Happily Ever
by Mouse9
Summary: Sequel to "Ever After" They say you can't go home again. Hel and Tad are about to test that theory as they head back to Hillwood; for Helga, to figure out a future with Arnold and for Tad, to take care of his mother. But things have a way of getting muddled and for Tad, it comes is the very alluring form of one Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd.
1. Chapter 1

" _When I first met you, I honestly didn't know you were gonna be this important to me."_

 _-Anonymous_

 **Valedictorian of young adult shows**

 **Wednesday night, the class of Holly Hills High School graduated and went their separate ways to record numbers.**

 **The show's final episode had a record 26.3 million viewers watching, which equals the main bowl game and the awards season.**

 **The show's four-year plan involving a group of teenagers as they made their way through high school was a popular with young adults and eventually bringing in a large age range of followers led their fans on a roller coaster of highs and lows including the death of two main characters as well as dealing with current social issues such as gay rights, drug use, underage drinking, bullying, eating disorders, to name a few. The tag line "** _ **sometimes there is no happy ending**_ **" resonated loudly in this series, no more so than the final season.**

 **Now that the show is over, the actors and actresses are moving on to different roles and the team that created this breakout hit have no announced plans on any upcoming projects.**

 **After the success of** **Ever After** **, millions are waiting with bated breath to see their next hit.**

* * *

The ringing of the phone pulled Tad out of a dream involving Amy Adams and Helena Bonham Carter. He patted the outdoor table next to him, almost spilling his drink in the process.

"Shit!" He was wide awake now, swinging his feet over the lounge chair on the roof and trying to catch the tilting bottle while grabbing his phone with the other hand.

He saved the bottle and gave a small sigh of relief.

"Hello?" he answered breathlessly. He didn't bother checking the ID, he could count the number of people who had this particular number on one hand.

"Hello from sunny Hillwood, son!" Tad grinned at his father's dry humor.

"Let me guess, it's raining again?" he joked.

"Day five of this glorious weather." His father sighed. "Which leads me to the reason I'm calling."

"I'm not about to send you my sunny weather."

No, no, nothing like that. Although I'm afraid the natives would cower in fear over the bright globe in the sky if you did send any. Your mother slipped down the front stairs yesterday."

Tad shot to his feet. "Is she okay?"

"No. She's in the hospital. Broke her leg in three places, her foot in two, and has a hairline fracture in her pelvis."

"Well, at least our family never does anything halfway," he joked weakly, already walking towards the interior of the house.

"That we don't," His father agreed. "I hate to ask you Tad, she's laid up for the minimum a month before she can start walking again. Or at the very least hobbling. The doctor wants to keep her in the hospital for the rest of this week, but I have the shop and there's no way I can keep that up as well as keep an eye on your mother. And you know how she is, the minute she gets bored…"

"She'll convinced herself she can still do everything and will end up hurting herself more, yes, I know." He finished. "What do you need?"

"I was thinking if you weren't working on anything this coming month, maybe you could come visit. Help me take care of your mom, see the sites, visit with old friends."

"Dad, all my old friends are here with me."

Helga looked up from where she was sitting at the kitchen bar table writing, a questioning look directed towards him as he walked through the room. He waved off her unasked question with a _I'll tell you in a minute._

"All the same. I understand if you're busy, but…"

"No, Dad. Hel and I are taking a much-deserved vacation until we figure out what to do next. Let me talk to Hel and I'll call you back in a bit." He paused as he opened the refrigerator door and peered in. "Is Mom okay right now?"

"Oh, she's fine. Just annoyed about slipping down the stairs right after warning me the steps were slippery."

Tad grinned. "Okay. I'll call you back in a bit. Tell her to hang in there."

"Wise words, if not a little late."

He laughed as he clicked off his cell phone.  
"Is your mom okay?"

The laptop screen was lowered and Helga was leaning against the counter bar waiting for his answer.

"She slipped down the stairs," he told her as he picked out another bottle and closed the refrigerator door. "Broke her leg in three places, her foot in two and fractured her pelvis."

"Ouch. Go Aggie," Helga muttered wincing. "She really went all out, didn't she?"

"Hey, the Gumblethorpes never do anything half-assed."

"So, why do you need to talk to me?"

"Dad wants me to visit. Or rather, come to help with Mom."

She leaned back on her stool. "Let me guess, you want me to come with? To Hillwood?"

He put the bottle on the counter and leaned forward, a mischievous grin on his face. "Arnold's there. You could spend time with Arnold." He almost sing-songed. Her reaction was perfect. Her cheeks went pink and she scowled at him.

"And so is Lila," she almost snarled. "And everyone else we never wanted to talk to again."

Tad shrugged. "My Dad understands why we left. For him to call me and ask this,"

"It's big, I know." Helga sighed heavily. "How many times have we been back to Hillwood since we left?"

"You? Never. Me? Twice." He answered honestly. "Mom's still the in the hospital for the rest of this week, so we have that much time to figure this out. You don't have to go, but I'd appreciate the backup."

"Of course I'll back you up." She answered immediately as if there was never any question of her not going. "Nobody said I had to see Bob and Miriam."

Tad grinned. "At least you won't have to rent a hotel room." He teased again. She gave him a bland stare.

"I'll reserve a hotel room."

* * *

Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd had always known what she wanted: a stable household, marriage to a wealthy man, trips to Milan, Paris, the Cayman Islands, parties. From the time she was old enough to understand that money could get her what she wanted, she had strived to have everything.

She endeavored to be the epitome of what she thought the entitled upper class entailed.

When she married the handsome and very wealthy Dashiell Montague, she thought she had finally achieved everything she'd ever wanted.

Then she had Veronica.

And her world changed. She realized that what she had always wanted was a family. What her parents had; the connection, the love, the support.

Dashiell, however, wanted none of that. He wanted his beautiful wife to continue her partying ways, their trips to Cancun, their parties in Malan.

He couldn't understand why she was suddenly content to stay at home and watch their daughter sleep. Why suddenly she would rather have mashed carrots with Veronica than caviar with him. Why she was happier walking the floors at three am when the baby had colic than being in Paris at three am drinking champagne.

He continued the trips, the parties, the vacations and she stayed home with her daughter.

As Veronica grew, Dashiell tried to pull her along with them to the trips. He was horrified when he discovered that his daughter would rather curl up in a chair with a book than hop on a red eye Concord to go to Fashion Week in Paris.

When Veronica was seven years old, Dashiell demanded a divorce. She was cramping his style, he wasn't father material, he had a new woman to drape over his arm and she was no longer needed.

If she was being honest with herself, she was relieved.

He demanded everything. And she relinquished it all, on the sole condition that he relinquish any and all legal guardianship of Veronica to her, that he pay child support until she turned eighteen and that he set up a college fund for her.

He agreed and within a month, papers were signed and Rhonda and Veronica moved back to Hillwood.

Her parents had offered to help her, to set her up in their home. But Rhonda had finally realized that she didn't need the money or the lavish lifestyle; all she needed came in a small package of a dark haired bespectacled girl who called her Mom.

It was nobody's business why she returned to Hillwood, why she was divorced from Dashiell, why she and Veronica were living in a modest two-bedroom house instead of with her parents.

Rhonda had, after all, earned her title of Queen Bitch in high school and it still served her well now.

Especially at her job.

"Meghan, I don't care what you have to do," Rhonda snapped coldly into her cell phone as she stepped into Green's Butcher Shop. The bell over the door tinkled lightly as it swung shut behind her. "The contracts were promised to be at the designers and they will be at the designer's tomorrow at nine am per our agreement. I left this in your hands because you said you could handle it. Do not make me regret taking a chance on you."

She waited in the back of the three-person line, content to be patient as the women in front of her demanded cuts of meat from the person behind the counter.

"If you can't handle it and I have to come back into the city to take care of this…" Her voice cut through the phone like sharpened icicles. She smiled coldly.

"That's what I thought. And Meghan, I had better see a happy designer tomorrow when I come in."

She swiped off her phone and turned her attention to the teen boy behind the counter, her cold smile turning professionally pleasant in a blink of an eye.

"Good afternoon, I'll have my usual."

The kid blanched, hesitating.

"I have this Jeremy."

Harold Berman stepped out from behind the swinging doors and put his hand on the kid's shoulder. "Go sweep out the back, would ya?"

"Sure Mr. Berman."

Harold fixed Rhonda with an exasperated look. "Quit terrifying my help."

Her professionally pasted smile morphed into a real one. She'd been damn lucky to find real friends once she returned. People who knew her at her worst and still liked her. The fact that their daughters all hung around together didn't hurt.

"Stop hiring easily terrified kids." She teased.

Chuckling, he began pulling out cuts of beef and chicken and wrapping them up, not even bothering to weight them. Rhonda came in every week and ordered the same thing. He knew by now exactly what she wanted and how much.

"Isabella's having a sleep over this weekend, but I'm sure you already knew about it." He said.

"Ten minutes after Izzy made the plans," Rhonda confirmed. "I don't even get asked anymore, it's just assumed."

"For all of us. I didn't even know there were plans until Patty mentioned it to me."

"I guess it's my turn next." The four girls alternated houses at least once a month for sleep overs.

"You can have it this weekend if you want." Harold offered as he handed the white paper package to her over the counter. "We got in some new kabobs I think Ronnie will like. I threw in a couple to test out."

"How much do I owe you?" she asked, reaching into her purse.

"Usual price. Just tell her to let me know what she thinks. I'm trying out a new rub."

She paid for the meat and smiled her thanks. "You know if she loves it, you'll never hear the end of it."

He grinned back. "That's what I'm betting on. See you this weekend."

* * *

Mrs. Davenport was walking out of the back bedroom when Rhonda walked into the door, trying to juggle her bags, the packages and her keys.

"Oh dear!" the older woman rushed forward, relieving Rhonda of the white wrapped package.

"I'll separate this and pop it into the freezer. Good evening dear!"

"Good evening Mrs. Davenport," Rhonda answered, shutting the door behind her and depositing her keys on the hook next to the entrance. When she returned to Hillwood the one thing her parents insisted on doing for her was employing a housekeeper to come at least twice a week. Which Rhonda accepted because, honestly, she hated cleaning toilets. Now after almost ten years, the older white haired woman was pretty much family.

"Veronica is in the living room working on homework. I honestly don't understand why they give those children so much homework their first week back to school."

Rhonda smiled as she peeked into the living room. Her daughter was sitting on the couch, her book spread out in front of her in an order only she could understand.

"Hey poppet, Mr. Berman gave us some kabobs he wants you to try. Wants your honest opinion on them."

Ronnie took a break from her homework to turn around on the couch and look at her mother. She adjusted her glasses as she smiled. Her daughter rivaled only Harold in their love of spicy food.

"If it doesn't burn my mouth, I'm not giving him a good review." She climbed off the couch and walked to her mother, giving her a hug.

"Mrs. Davenport said you had homework?"

"I'm almost finished. It's just in the AP classes.

"Finish it up, dinner should be in about thirty minutes."

She kissed her daughter's cheek and walked back across the house to the kitchen where Mrs. Davenport was finishing putting away the meat Rhonda had picked up from the butcher.

"I kept those kabobs out, as I figured Veronica would want those for dinner." The older woman said, her nose wrinkling. "Honestly, just smelling them cleared my sinuses." She washed her hands in the sink and turned back as she took off her apron. "I'm going to head out."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay for dinner?" Rhonda teased lightly. The woman waved her off, making a face.

"Oh goodness, I'd never be able to sleep tonight if I ate one bite of that. I'll see you on Thursday, dear."

"Good night Mrs. Davenport." Rhonda called out as the woman left. She heard the door close a moment later as she pulled out a grilling pan and began making dinner.

* * *

"No phones at the table." Rhonda chastised. Ronnie gave her a sheepish look as she put her phone back in her pocket.

"Sorry," she muttered as she picked up her kabob and bit into it. Rhonda waited a bit for Ronnie's assessment of dinner. Somedays she thought that her daughter could be a great food critic. And then she remembered that she hated prawns.

Ronnie chewed slowly, a look of concentration on her face.

"Well?"

"It has a kick," she finally said. "More of a mango jerk taste. This would be really good on fish, not so much on lamb."

"Well, let Mr. Berman know when you see him next." She picked up her fork and speared a piece of avocado. "Now, what so important that your friends can't wait until after dinner to discuss?"

"Oh, it was Allen. He was snapchatting me from Vegas. He's bored and tired of rehearsing."

If there was one thing that shocked her when her daughter returned from LA over a year ago was her continued friendship with two of the actors from Ever After. Even after hearing about Anne Cummings and Allen Adams nonstop during those five days, four nights, she still fully expected an out of sight, out of mind situation. So, she was stunned when she discovered that both Anne and Allen separately and together still talked to Ronnie. It was a true friendship, in the closest to Hollywood sense of the word. Helga and Tad had done good regarding their actors and how they treated people.

"Well, one message and then phone up until you finish your dinner." She relented. Ronnie grinned and as Rhonda expected, she took a picture of her food and sent a quick message before putting her phone in her pocket and continuing her meal.

"What time do I need to drop you off at Izzy's on Friday?"

"About six. Mrs. Berman said we were good until six the next night."

"I can do that." It also gave her twelve hours to do nothing. Unfortunately, nothing was exactly what came to mind.


	2. Chapter 2

" _This isn't really the best idea you've had, Phoebs,"_

" _Helga, it's hot outside, the public pool is open and Gerald said he'd meet us here. Why are you so against going?"_

 _Helga folded her arms tighter around her waist. "One word Phoebs, swimsuits."_

 _The smaller teen rolled her eyes as she pulled her best friend out of the locker room and into the gated pool area. Helga spotted some of their old friends playing in the pool or sitting around in the beach chairs, wincing as Phoebe dragged her to one of the open chairs beside Sheena._

" _Strip Pataki."_

 _Phoebe pulled off her shorts and tank top to reveal a fitted blue two piece. She dropped her towel onto the chair and slipped off her flip flops. Helga still stood by the chair in her shorts and top._

" _Did you forget your swimsuit?"_

" _It's not that…"_

" _Helga, are you willing to sweat when you have the opportunity to jump into the pool? What is going on?"_

 _Helga rubbed at her arm. "Well, you see, I told Miriam I needed a new swimsuit. She told Olga who took it upon herself to buy me one. All she knew was I wanted pink."_

 _Phoebe shrugged. "So? Is it a kid's swimsuit?"_

" _Not quite…"_

" _Helga…"_

 _Phoebe's growl was enough to move Helga into gear. Sitting down on the chair and glancing around to make sure nobody else was looking, she pulled off her shorts and with one more look, took off her top revealing a tiny hot pink bikini. Phoebe squeaked and tossed her towel towards Helga._

" _What the…did she forget you're only thirteen? That looks like something Rhonda would wear!"_

 _Helga held her arms in front of her chest, using the towel to cover herself. "Her exact words were 'Oh baby sister, you're growing up. You need a swimsuit that shows off your assets.' Assets, Phoebs? Like these are assets I want?" she half gestured to herself by moving her arms a bit. "I wonder if they'll let me wear my shirt in the pool?"_

" _Then you'll have a wet shirt on the way home."_

" _Might be worth it."_

 _She put the towel behind her and turned to pick up her shirt, intending to put it back on. From across the pool Harold's voice suddenly rang out loud and clear._

" _Hey look! Helga has boobs!"_

 _Helga and Phoebe froze, staring at each other in horror._

" _Harold, don't be such a Neanderthal," Nadine yelled back as she walked past the two girls dressed in a turquoise two piece. "Nice swimsuit Helga. Although I'm not sure you have the confidence to pull it off."_

" _I can't even get up to kill him because I'm afraid it won't stay where it's supposed to. I'm gonna kill Olga."_

 _Nadine laughed. "If you are going to wear it, you might think about investing in sunscreen. Otherwise you're going to bu…oh my God!"_

" _There's my baby girl and holy crap Pataki, where have you been hiding those?"_

 _Helga growled as Phoebe whirled around to confront her still newly minted boyfriend._

" _GeraldOhmyGOD! Arnold!"_

 _Helga was frozen. Walking towards them was Gerald wearing an almost matching blue pair of swim shorts and beside him…_

 _The last time she saw him was in San Lorenzo when they were ten. He was staying with his parents and she was climbing onto a plane to return to Hillwood. They'd been innocent; blue hats and pigtails and shy closed mouth kisses in the jungle. Now, at fourteen, he was tall and muscular, his hair was longer, he was really tan and those swim shorts were…._

 _In a blur Helga screamed and literally threw her oversized shirt over her head and pulled her arms through the sleeves to cover the tiny pink bikini top that showed more than she was comfortable._

 _They were already surrounded. She sat there in shock, staring at the blonde teen, drinking the sight of him in as their old friends and classmates surrounded him and Gerald; handshakes and hugs and slaps on the back. Laughter and greetings._

 _She saw Lila, green bikini and the confidence to wear it, practically jump into his arms to hug him. He laughed and hugged her back. She saw him hug Nadine and Sheena and Phoebe who'd somehow gotten into the group unbeknownst to her, all the while Lila was still hanging right next to his side, laughing and talking like she'd walked into the pool with him and Gerald._

 _Phoebe looked back at her friend; still sitting on the deck chair, staring at the crowd and her favorite scoop of ice cream like he was something she'd forgotten she'd been craving. Tugging gently on Gerald's hand to lead him towards the chairs they'd claimed and alternately, pulling Arnold with them, she looked up at her boyfriend._

" _This was your surprise?"_

 _Gerald grinned down at her. "Yeah, isn't it great? He got in last night. He and his parents decided he should move back in with his grandparents and attend high school here. So he'll be here for the next four years. Isn't that great?"_

" _It certainly is a surprise," she agreed._

 _He tossed his town on the chair next to where Helga was still sitting staring up at them. "You okay Pataki?"_

 _She finally blinked, snapping out of her stupor. "Yeah…heh…I just remembered. Bob wants me home. Something about the beeper store and clients over for dinner, heh…"_

 _She grabbed her shorts and jerked them on. Gerald looked unconvinced._

" _Uh huh,"_

" _Helga…" Phoebe started._

" _I'll call you later Phoebs," Helga spoke over her, a hint of panicked hysteria in her voice. "Can't believe I forgot about that. Bob's gonna be pissed."_

 _She shoved her feet into her flip flops and grabbed her towel, standing up._

" _Helga…"_

 _She turned and ran straight into a solid object._

" _Helga!"_

 _The object suddenly grabbed her and pulled her into a tight hug._

" _Oof."_

" _I'm so glad I you're here! I've missed you guys so much!"_

 _Arnold released her, still holding onto her arms. She looked at him, their eyes meeting. Her mouth opened and could only emit a breathless panicked giggle before she turned and all but ran towards the locker rooms._

* * *

"At least it's not raining."

They landed in the small Hillwood airport mid-afternoon to sunny skies and warm temperatures. It seemed as if the rain marathon Ken Gumblethorpe had lamented about a couple of days before had broken.

After calling his father back to tell him that both he and Hel would be coming to Hillwood within the next couple of days, they were both scrambling to get flight tickets, car rentals, hotel room all on a couple of days' notice.

Tad was supposed to be staying with his parents but they both knew that after a couple of days of that, Tad would be begging for an escape. Helga just eliminated that need by renting out a townhouse for a month. It was cheaper than a hotel room and it gave them more privacy.

"Wanna bet it doesn't rain the entire time we're here?"

Helga picked up her bags from the turnstile. "I am not taking that bet. God know this town loves messing with me."

The two walked towards the car rental kiosk towards the front of the airport. Tad smiled brightly at the woman working the kiosk.  
"Good afternoon. Reservation for Gumblethorpe?"

The entire process took very little time, although longer than probably usual due to the woman's constant flirting with Tad. Helga stood back watching in amusement as Tad maneuvered her into giving him a discount for long term use and an upgrade while keeping her at arm's length without her knowing she was being kept. She'd seen him use the same tactic on petulant actors and high maintenance actresses. He always made it look ridiculously easy.

But then, that was his style.

Fifteen minutes later, they were out in the parking lot, looking for space C-6. Helga stopped cold next to the parking space looking askance at the red convertible sports car sitting in the spot.

"Are you kidding me?"

Tad grinned. "Hey, we are two kids who are back home after making it big in the city of lights. Hell yes, I'm going to shove it in everyone's damn face."

Helga shook her head as she put her bags in the small backseat, leaving the trunk open for Tad's bags.

"Don't you think this is a little ostentatious?"

Tad slid into the driver's side and slid the key into the ignition grinning as the car roared to life.

"I don't think it's ostentatious enough."

* * *

Lunch period this year was Ronnie's favorite. It was the only period she had with all of her friends and it was scheduled right in the middle of her school day so she had a mid-point break before getting back into her classes. It was also a brief time when she could check her phone. It never failed, she always had at least one snap chat from either Anne or Allen. Usually a sunrise, or a quick walking video as they were heading to wherever they were going at that time. Anne was in the middle of working a teen thriller movie that, according to her, she was already regretting signing on for. And Allen was rehearsing for sci-fi miniseries. So the majority of his chats were pictures of spaceships or bad rubber aliens.

She pulled her phone out as she and Izzy walked the final hallway towards the cafeteria, Izzy talking about her ever going flirtation with Zeke in her Spanish Four class and Ronnie nodding in the appropriate places. Someone bumped her shoulder as they turned the corner and she was pushed to the side.

"Pay attention to where you're walking and stop talking to your imaginary boyfriend, loser." The voice sneered at her. Ronnie glanced up from her phone. Three blondes stood in her way, the one in the middle glaring at her fiercely.

Izzy reached around and snagged Ronnie's sleeve. "And if you paid attention to where you were going, Dallas, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

The blonde in the middle turned her glare to Izzy. "Watch your mouth Berman or I'll find someone to watch it for you."

Izzy snorted back laughter. "Please Dallas, your twin brother couldn't touch me, even if he wanted to. Walk away, make your snide remarks, and move on with your life."

Izzy stood three inches taller and had at least a good sixty pounds of muscle over the blonde, so with one more shove, the blonde and her friends walked off.

"Come on, we're going to miss the good pizza." Izzy said as she pulled Ronnie down the remainder of the hallway and into the cafeteria. Daphne and Lyss already had a table saved.

"Uh oh, that's not a good look." Lyss remarked as Izzy tossed her books onto the table.

"Just Dallas being a bitch again. I'm starving."

"You want the usual Ronnie?" Lyss asked. Ronnie pulled out a five and handed it to the dark haired girl.

"Thanks Lyss."

For their entire four years in high school, whenever the girls had lunch together, Ronnie had always been the unofficial table guardian. She watched the books, bags, purses, projects and in turn, someone picked up her lunch. It saved her from having to stand in the lunch line, something she absolutely hated and it saved everyone else from having to drag their junk through the line like almost all of the other students did.

Swiping on her snapchat app, she found today's message.

It was a picture of a black hole, painted on a huge backdrop. The message was at the bottom of the picture.

 **Ugh day. Ever wish you could escape through one of these?**

The response picture was of a pool with a bit of red food coloring in it, making it look as if there was blood in it.

 **Had enough, had to take out the director. Need ez escape route.**

Ronnie grinned and, lifting her phone, snapped a quick picture of the bustling cafeteria. She wrote a message at the bottom of the picture.

 **Could be worse. This could be your real life.**

"Thank God for short lines," Daphne put her tray on the table and slid into her seat. She nodded towards Ronnie's phone. "What's up?"

"Nothing," She slid her phone back into her pocket. "Just checking notifications."

"You're on social media more now that you ever were last year."

"Or the year before that." Lyss added as she put her tray onto the table. She handed Ronnie a bottle of water and a salad.

"Or the year before that." Izzy continued. "I'm beginning to believe those rumors about a boyfriend Ronnie."

"No boyfriend. No time."

"So you're cyberstalking celebrities again." Lyss joked.

"It's not cyberstalking when they talk back." Ronnie retorted.

Lyss sighed, "Ronnie, a week in LA does not make you best friends with actors. Daphne doesn't go around fake tweeting the actors."

"Leave me out of this." Daphne insisted. "And in defense, once again, Anne and Allen were pretty friendly with Ronnie during that week. More so than I was with any of the other actors. So it's possible they still talk to her."

"It's just hard to defend her when she won't give us proof." Lyss gave Ronnie a look. "We love you Ronnie and you know we'll all fight anyone who talks shit about you, but seriously, you're taking this a bit too far."

"Why? Because I won't show you the snapchat conversations?" she snapped. "Number one, it's nobody's business. I don't go around showing everyone our private conversations. Number two, you know how snap chat works, I can't show you a conversation even if I wanted to, they disappear too fast. Third off, it's nobody's business."

"Ronnie, we're here. We're your friends. Why are you so obsessed with two actors in Hollywood?" Lyss insisted.

"I'm not obsessed. I can't have friends other than you three? You act like I'm making plans to suddenly drop everything and hitchhike to LA." Ronnie stood up, grabbing her back and her bottle of water. "I have a paper to write."

"Ronnie," Lyss and Daphne called out but she was already storming across the cafeteria towards the hallway. Lyss gave the other two a distraught look.

"Should I have not said anything?"

"She'll snap out of it." Izzy said, taking a bite of her chicken. "You know how she gets."

"Should I have not said anything?" Lyss repeated to Daphne imploringly. "Is she maybe telling the truth?"

Daphne shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe? Sorry, I was too busy dealing with my own issues during the trip to watch Ronnie so I really don't know."

* * *

Hillwood's lost children finally returned after all these years. Helga watched the store fronts and streets pass as Tad drove to the address of the townhouse.

Of course it was on the upper side of the city, what everyone used to call the "rich neighborhood". A place where her father always secretly and sometimes not so secretly, aspired to eventually live. The brownstone was nice, for them, but to live in the upper side, Big Bob had equated that with finally making it-being successful-powerful.

So the irony of renting a townhouse here as her parents still lived in the brownstone was not lost on Helga. In fact, she reveled in it.

As they passed neighborhoods that turned from blocks of brownstones to cul de sacs and larger houses, she wondered absently if she should have rented a car. The moment after she'd agreed to accompany Tad on this trip she knew there were people she had to see. People she hadn't seen since she left this town. She needed to…apologize to, to talk with them, to see if they were taken care of.

She could borrow the convertible, but it was under Tad's name and she was sure he would use it the majority of the time. She could walk. Take a cab to the main part of town and walk the block, walk the neighborhoods. She'd done it for years when she was younger, almost walked all over the entire city of Hillwood, she could do it again.

She hadn't told Arnold she was coming.

At the time she thought it would be a clever surprise, to show up at his front door but now that she was here.

She should have told him. What if he wasn't in town? What if he was busy with other plans? What if he didn't feel the same way anymore and was just too nice to say anything because she was an entire continent away. What would showing up at his front doorstep do?

"You're thinking too loud."

"Huh?"

Tad turned left at a light and continued driving. "I can practically see what you're thinking on your face. You didn't tell Arnold you were coming here, did you?"

"I knew it was a bad idea," She let her head fall back against the headrest with a soft thump. "I thought it would be a cute surprise, I should've known that was a bad idea. He might not be in town, he might be trying to break it off with me and just hasn't because I'm so far away, he might be…"

"Whoa!" Tad interrupted her. "How did you go from out of town to a broken relationship? Honey!" He took one of her clenched fists in his hand. "It'll be a surprise, but I can promise you he hasn't been planning on leaving you for months and just hasn't because it's easier to pretend when you're across the country."

"Quit reading my mind," she groaned, her eyes closed.

"Hel, I've heard some of your disgustingly sweet conversations. Including some of the tame ones you put on speakerphone when you think I'm not home. That man is crazy about you, he has no plans of breaking off your relationship." He grinned mischievously. "If you don't end up have breakfast at his house at least once this trip, I will be very disappointed."

She groaned again. "Tad."  
"He loves you Hel. It defies logic and I have no idea how the hell you two have kept up a long distance relationship for this long, but he loves you. And he's going to be happy to see you. Surprised. But definitely happy. And…holy crap batman!"

He pulled into the driveway of an elaborate brick two story townhouse that looked like it could fit a family of nine. He looked over shocked. "What the hell? It's ginormous!"

She merely smirked. "You have your ostentatious moments and I have mine."


	3. Chapter 3

_I did miss you, you know."_

 _The beginning of their high school career was looming in the distance. There was only four days left of summer vacation. Helga had spent the entire rest of the summer glued to Phoebe's person, but even she had to admit that she was being ridiculous._

 _Phoebe had finally put her foot down and demanded that she keep Arnold company so she could spend time with Gerald. Which is why Arnold and Helga were currently sitting in Tina Park throwing corn at the ducks._

 _She forced a nervous laugh._

" _Well, I am pretty difficult to forget."_

" _I'll say. Especially in that pink…"_

" _Finish that sentence bucko and I'll pound ya."_

 _Arnold laughed, his hands held up in defense. "I'm kidding Helga. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good enough look at your sister's swimwear choices for you. I had to hear the second-hand observations of Harold and Gerald."_

" _Remind me later to pound both of them then,"_

" _I'm not going to remind you to punch my best friend." He chastised. "Harold, however…"_

 _She relaxed, tossing another handful of corn towards the ducks. They sat in comfortable silence for a while, his leg almost touching hers but not quite. Helga thought if they could just stay this way forever, she would be perfectly content._

" _So, why are you still wearing that hat?"_

 _She reached over, plucking the hat from his head. He let her, watching as she carefully turned it over in her hands._

" _It makes me feel closer to my parents. I didn't wear it at all while I was living with them, but I brought it along when I flew back here. In the beginning, the hat gave me hope. It was a link to them, proof that there were there, even if it was for a short time. Now," he shrugged. "It's still a link to them, a reminder that they are out there and would come if I ever called them. So, why are you still wearing that bow?"_

 _He reached out, his fingers gently stroking the bow that was holding her ponytail together. Helga's breath caught in her throat and she handed his hat back to him._

" _It reminds me."_

" _Of what?" His fingers were still tangled in strands of her hair. She didn't want him to stop._

" _That there's always hope."_

 _He looked at her and smiled._

" _I like that. And I always did like this bow. You look good in pink."_

 _It was as if time had stopped. If her life was a movie, this would be the part where the leading man leans in to kiss the leading lady and then declares his love to her. She stopped breathing, her eyes locked with his, waiting to see what would happen next. His fingers slid out of her hair, landing on her shoulder._

 _His eyes never left hers. He moved closer towards her._

" _Arnold! I have been looking all over for you!"_

 _From fifth to eighth grade, Helga had had no problems with Lila Sawyer. They got along…kind of. Heck, they were almost downright friendly towards each other. But right now, Helga was seconds from launching herself off the park bench and at the red-haired girl who'd just broken the perfect moment with her annoying voice._

 _Arnold turned around, his hand retracting from Helga's shoulder. Helga's hands curled into her fist._

" _Hey Lila. Just sitting here with Helga feeding the ducks."_

 _The red-haired teen giggled as she sat down on the bench next to Arnold. The only thing Helga liked about this was it forced him closer to her, their legs now touching._

" _I saw Gerald and Phoebe at the movies and he said you had plans to walk the park. I'm so glad I found you here."_

 _Correction, first she was going to pound Gerald. Then, she was going to pound Lila._

" _What can we do for you Lila?"_

" _Well I don't want to bother you, but my father is having a devil of a time trying to fix a ceiling fixture and I remember you used to help your grandparents around your house. Would you be willing to help him?"_

" _Well…" He looked back at Helga as if asking her permission. She couldn't keep him all to herself, of course all his other friends would have demands of his time. The moment was over and it was doubtful it would be coming back, even if she decided she wanted to be selfish and keep him all to herself. She never could be selfish, especially when it came to him._

" _Go ahead. We're about finished here anyway."_

 _He frowned, his eyes searching her face._

" _Are you sure?"_

" _Of course she is." Lila answered for her, standing up and tugging Arnold to his feet. "Oh thank you so much Arnold, you don't know how much this means to me."_

" _I'll see you around tomorrow football head." Helga said, fighting the sudden sick feeling in her stomach. He gave her a half smile._

" _Yeah. Okay."_

 _Helga watched as they left the park. She should have told Lila to buzz off. There had been a moment, she was almost certain of it. A moment where he had almost kissed her._

 _She looked back out at the lake, tossing the remainder of the corn to the couple of ducks that had remained idling swimming close to the edge of the lake._

 _Tomorrow, she decided. She was tired of waiting. Tomorrow, somehow, she was going to get him alone and she was going to finish what he'd almost started this afternoon. She was damn well going to get her romantic movie ending no matter what. This was a new chapter in her life, she was going to make sure Arnold was with her in it._

 _Which was why, the next morning, her heart shattered when she overheard Gerald and Arnold talking about how the night before he and Lila had officially become a couple._

* * *

They spend the rest of the evening unpacking, setting their personal belongings up to make it more comfortable. They went to the nearest grocery store and spent over an hour in there playfully bickering over food items and beer verses wine, organic verses junk food. Exactly the same way they shopped back home. Here, however, they received a couple of curious glances as Helga ignored Tad impassioned plea for Yahoo soda because "you just can't get quality like this on the West Coast!"

The next morning Tad and Helga drove to the main part of town. He dropped her off at the courthouse and continued his journey to the hospital.

He hated this town. He loved his parents and would come whenever one of them asked, but he never liked this town. It started falling apart long before he was born and there were days he could feel his own soul crumbling along with the city. He noticed the revitalization process happening everywhere they drove; the newer, better Hillwood. A family friendly little town only an hour away from the Big Apple. Who wouldn't love the allure of little town living with all the amenities of big city life at their fingertips?

Some days he's wondered what would have happened if Scheck had managed to bulldoze the entire neighborhood. At the time, it was becoming a rotting cesspool of run down building and crumbling abandoned brownstones. Hell, Scheck's idea for the mega mall would never have worked, but could it have made the neighborhood any worse?

Then, that's what he thought. Now, he could see how an abandoned mega mall would be much worse for this city. A megalith of steel and glass, abandoned, broken, unsafe. Scheck wasn't a savvy businessman or else he would've have known that a mall of that magnitude so close to the hustle and bustle of New York while popular for a year or two, eventually would have given way to ruin as the patrons went back to taking the train to the city where everything they wanted was in walking distance with the added bonus of the raw energy the city gave to its visitors.

Rotting as it was back then, Hillwood never would have survived.

His family would've been forced to leave, to relocated someplace else.

They would've lost their business.

He wouldn't have been as close as he was to Hel.

They wouldn't have gone to Los Angeles.

They wouldn't have become the hottest thing in television right now.

He'd probably be working at a minimum wage job hating his life and cursing the name Hillwood.

No, as much as he hated this town, he was glad of what it had given him in return.

He walked through the halls, ignoring the curious looks around him, knowing where he was going and not needing directions. He knew his outfit of dark jeans, expensive polo and loafers was attracting attention which is why he dressed this way. His outfit, while casual, screamed money and position. And since he was now an outsider in a relatively close knit city, stares were expected.

He reached the room his mother was in and knocked on the door.

"Quit knocking, it's not like I can escape." He heard his mother snap out and he grinned as he opened the door.

"I wouldn't put it past you woman." He teased. Aggie Gumblethorpe's eyes widened in pleasure at her only child.

"Thaddeus!" she exclaimed, lifting her hands up. "Did your father call you?"

"Of course, you know we all have to share when one of us does something spectacularly stupid." He walked to where she lay and bent down to kiss her cheek. "All things given, you look much better than I expected."

"I'm bored." She complained as he took a chair next to her bed. "They won't let me out of the bed and I keep insisting I'm perfectly fine."

"Just what kind of drugs are you on?" he asked. "Dad said you broke yourself in at least five places, you should be in pain, not plotting to walk out the front door."

"She's on Dialudid."

Tad turned his attention curiously to the nurse who'd walked into his mother's room. The woman checked Aggie's IV.

How are you feeling Aggie?"

"Bored."

"Better bored than in pain."

Tad stood up, watching the two women. "Should I leave the room?"

"No stay. I'm just taking her vitals."

"Tad, this is Emily. One of the less vile nurses in this hospital."

"I take that as a compliment." Emily answered without hesitation. "And to be fair, you're one of the less annoying patients I've had in a while."

"That's only because she's leaving in a day or two and you won't be subject to the full bored Aggie Gumblethorpe shtick." Tad said dryly.

"Emily, this is my darling and only child Thaddeus. He's a big shot producer out in Hollywood and he thinks he's a comedian."

"I am a comedian," he corrected, noting Emily's curious look. "One has to be in this family. And once again Mother dear, you're making up stuff. I am not a big shot producer."

Aggie snorted dismissively, as a smiling Emily took her vitals. "You could visit more often."

"Trust me Mom, by the time this month is over, you'll be so sick of me you'll be begging me to go back to California."

* * *

The walk from City Hall to here wasn't very far. And she remembered to wear good walking shoes.

She stopped in front of the marble marker, nervously tearing at the blue paper around the bouquet of multi colored daisies. It'd been so long since she'd been here, she wasn't sure if the person before her would forgive her.

She took a deep breath and faked a smile, stepping forward and bending down to place the flowers in front of the marker.

 **Phoebe Heyerdahl**

 **Born: June 1, 1987**

 **Died: October 16, 2004**

 **The best of everyone**

"Hiya Phoebs," Her voice almost left her. She cleared her throat and tried again.

"It's been a long time. Sorry about that. Yeah, that sounded sincere, didn't it? I can almost see you giving me that look. The truth is…"

The lump was threatening to close her throat. Her eyes burned in a way that they hadn't in decades and she couldn't breathe. Her legs gave out and she fell to the ground in front of the marker.

"I'm sorry Phoebe. I'm so damn sorry." She whispered, the tears breaking through and streaming down her face. This time she let them. Phoebe was one of three people who ever saw her cry. She could let herself be weak now.

"I ran. You were taken from me. I lost everything that year, or so I thought. The only thing I wanted to do was run. Run as far and as fast away from this town and the nightmares it held to someplace where they didn't know the name Pataki. It wasn't until I ran that I realized I was leaving you. And for that I am so so sorry. I never meant to leave you. Trust me, there were days I wished I had the guts to follow you."

She picked up the flowers and tugged at the ribbon holding the bouquet together. The paper gave way and she pulled out the flowers, leaning forward and arranging them in one of the vases that were on either side of the headstone. She wiped at her eyes.

"God, I wish you were still here. There isn't a day when you aren't on my mind, more so this past year." She barked a soft laugh through her tears. "Oh Phoebs, I wish you could see what Tad and I did. Our entire damn lives, on Blue Ray for posterity and entertainment purposes. Stories that needed to be told. Who knew we'd all touch so many lives so many years later. You were supposed to have the happily ever after. The career, the loving husband, the adorable children and the house with the fence. I was supposed to be the nomad aunt who stopped by every once in a while to spoil the kids and talk about old times before disappearing again. If anyone deserved a happy ending, it was you."

Still on her knees, unmindful of the ground digging into her jeans, she reached out and stroked her fingers along the writing on the warm marble.

"I could write you a sonnet. God knows I wrote enough of them that last year. It was either write or go crazy and between you and me, as much as your boyfriend was there for me, he wasn't you. Nobody ever compared to you. Even Tad in his silly, insane, lovable way isn't you. You have been and will always be my best friend Phoebe and nobody could ever take that from us. I love you, Phoebe."

"Of all the cemeteries in all the world, and you had to walk into mine."

Helga stiffened at the voice behind her. She smiled through her tears at the headstone.

"You had to send him, didn't you?" She murmured before climbing to her feet.

A dark-skinned man wearing a suit and tie stood a little way away from the grave site. He held a bouquet of roses and watched her as she wiped dirt from her pants.

"Did I interrupt your visit?"

"Nah," He walked passed her, unwrapping the roses and placing them into one of the other vases. He dropped a kiss on the top of the headstone before turning back to eye her warily.

"Last time I saw you, you were heading to the airport. That's been, what, almost two decades ago?"

"I couldn't come back."

"I know." He approached her, pulling her to him in a hug. She hugged him back, smiling at the still familiar smell of his aftershave.

"It's good to see you." She said, her voice muffled against his shoulder.

"You too, terror. You know, she told me you were coming." He said as he pulled away from the hug. She gave him a confused look. He jerked his head towards the wooden bench situated close to the gravesite and she followed him.

"I had a dream a couple of night ago. Came home after a hell of a day and just crashed straight into bed. Slept the entire night and during that time I had a dream. Standing in my living room and there she was. She told me you were coming home and I had better be nice or else."

Helga laughed. "She's still playing mediator."

"How long you in town?" He asked.

"A month at least. Tad's mom is out of commission for a while and his dad called to ask if he could come down and help out. I decided to tag along."

"Tad's here too?"

"Yeah, he should still be at the hospital with his mom."

Gerald stood up, casting one last look towards the tombstone now covered with flowers and gleaming in the sunlight.

"You hungry? Technically, this is my lunch hour."

She shrugged. "I could go for some fries or something."


	4. Chapter 4

_Gerald opened his front door as Arnold was preparing to knock. Both teens jerked back in shock. Arnold was the first to recover._

" _What the hell man?"_

" _What are you talking about, you're the one who's on my doorstep."_

" _That's because I can't find you any other way!" Arnold advanced on him. "I haven't seen you in a week. You don't call, you don't stop by. Hell, I haven't even seen you at school."_

 _Gerald shifted his weight onto his other foot, and leaned against the still open door._

" _Funny, because I've seen you and Lila plenty of times."_

" _Is that what this is about? Because you're dating Phoebe you're suddenly not allowed to talk to me? Is this one of those me or him choices?"_

" _First, don't say shit about Phoebe. She'd never make me choose between her and you, unlike your girlfriend. And if you don't know that by now…"_

" _How in the hell am I supposed to know anything?" Arnold yelled. "All I know is I get into a fight with Helga and suddenly I don't see hide nor hair of you! What am I supposed to think?"_

" _That maybe if you'd get your head out of Lila's ass, you'd know exactly where I was." Gerald yelled back. "We were in the same damn school library on Thursday and I saw you on Friday afternoon carrying Lila's books to your car."_

 _Gerald's younger sister, Timberly, walked out of the kitchen, eyeing the two teens. "Are you two breaking up or something?"_

 _Gerald spun around as Arnold looked around the teen into the house._

" _Shut up Timberly!" they both yelled. The girl rolled her eyes._

" _Whatever. Dad said come in or get out. He isn't paying to air condition the whole neighborhood."_

 _Gerald and Arnold looked at each other and began laughing. Gerald stepped out onto the stoop and shut the door behind him._

" _Sorry man," Arnold said. Gerald shook his head._

" _Nah, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things."_

" _I swear I didn't see you Thursday or Friday."_

" _To be fair, I was with Phoebe on Friday and as much as she would never make me choose between you and her, it probably wouldn't have been a good idea to be around her right then."_

 _Arnold stuck out his fist. "We still friends?"_

 _Gerald held out his fist and finished their signature handshake. "We'll always be friends. Although right now I promised Phoebe I'd take her to see a lecture at the science museum. But if you're free tonight, we can totally hang out."_

 _Arnold grinned. "That sounds great man."_

* * *

He waited until the waitress took their order and left before jumping straight to the point. It was one of the things she respected about Gerald, his ability to cut straight through the small talk.

"My boy doesn't know you're here, does he?"

She shook her head as she played with a straw wrapper. He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table.

"You didn't tell him you were coming?"

"At first I thought it would be a surprise, you know, just show up on his doorstep instead of our nightly phone call. When I got here…"

"You freaked out and started thinking of every imaginary idea on why it was suddenly a bad idea?" he finished. She nodded.

"We're fine on the phone or facetime, but we're also on either end of the country. What if he's just being nice? Or he doesn't even like me like that anymore and he's just too nice to say anything. Tad says I'm wrong, but I don't…"

"Stop, right now." Gerald reached over and placed a hand over her nervous ones. "You're panicking over nothing. Let me tell you about my best friend. Ever since he's gotten home from California he has been the happiest I've seen him in a damn long time. He gets this ridiculously goofy grin whenever he talks about you."

Helga raised an eyebrow. "You two talk about me?"

Gerald raised one shoulder in a shrug. "He talks, I get stuck listening. Arnold is ridiculously over the fence when it comes to you. I don't know how Daphne deals with his moods on a daily basis and honestly, I have no idea how Lila doesn't know something's up with him." He removed his hand and leaned back. "Trust me girl, he's going to be ecstatic when he finds out you're here."

Helga let out a deep breath. "Thanks. I swear it's this town. The minute we landed, my brain went into overdrive with every bad and negative idea it could come up with. "

"Here you go Detective, one turkey BLT and chips. And a cheeseburger and fries."

Gerald smiled at the waitress putting down their food. "Thanks Cece. Looks good as usual."

Helga gave him a look after their waitress left. "Looks like you have an admirer."

"Cece's great. She looks after all the cops in this town. And don't worry about my moves Pataki, I do fine."

They ate in silence for a few minutes before Gerald dropped the next bomb.

"I hear your show's over."

Helga paused in her eating for a moment, raising her eyes to look at him. "Yep."

"I had to listen to Alyssa lament about how there was nothing on television anymore." He was silent for another moment, eating a chip before he raised his head and looked at her. "I also heard about the heartbreaking episode earlier this year where one of their favorite characters was senselessly killed off. I thought there was going to be a revolt in Hillwood High the way the girls were talking about it."

Helga froze. She looked up at Gerald. "You didn't watch it did you?"

"Nope. You asked me not to four years ago and I guessed you had your reasons. I trust you Helga. She trusts you. I know you did right…whatever it was."

She smiled slightly. "Thank you Gerald."

He shrugged and continued eating. "Nah. Besides, if she didn't like it, I'm sure you'd be hearing all about it."

Helga ate another fry. "No. I wouldn't. She doesn't talk to me Gerald."

They were delving into uncomfortable territory. She knew it and he knew it. They'd never talked about it; not after it happened, not later in their Senior year when they spent way too much time together in an old ice cream shop talking about everything and everyone except her. Not in their brief texts, not even when she called him over four years ago and told him not to watch the new show she and Tad were producing. They skirted around the issue a couple of times later, but never talked directly about the incident that changed both of their lives one sunny October morning.

Gerald took one last bite of his sandwich before pushing away the plate.

"Why do you think that is?"

Helga stopped mid bite. She swallowed hard before answering, feeling the food suddenly turn into a lump in her stomach. There were things she could say, she could change the subject, she could just refuse to have this conversation.

"I wouldn't want to talk to me either." She answered.

The time had finally come to face it.

"You don't think it doesn't have anything to do with the fact that you shut out everything to survive? That you just shut down and then ran far away after high school? Not that I'm saying it was a dick move, because it wasn't. You needed to leave to live, I get that. But, did you even think that the reason she never talked to you was because you couldn't have handled it at that time?"

Helga wanted to argue, she could feel the anger surging up in her, to automatically deny everything he was saying. She opened her mouth to fight back. But nothing came out. Gerald took this as a sign to continue.

"Did you know, in that first month, Tad had you on suicide watch? Especially the first couple of days. He was terrified you'd try to follow."

"He practically drug me to Dr. Bliss' office our Senior year. The first thing we did after finding an apartment in LA was find me a therapist." Her eyes were red rimmed and watery but no tears dared spill from where they were pooling in her eyes. "He's been my rock, my best friend these past years. I don't know what I would have done without him and you our last year."

That was the closest thing anyone would ever get to a heartfelt admission of affection from Helga so Gerald took it. He'd discovered a very well-kept secret while spending time with Helga their Senior year. If you took the time to fight past her prickly exterior, brash, almost bullying demeanor and became one of the few people she would truly and unhesitant trust, she was actually one big emotional marshmallow. All those things Arnold had insisted about Helga when they were younger, that underneath there was a different Helga, that she was good and kind, actually wasn't the force of nature she portrayed to the world had been true. Arnold had just forgotten when he came back to attend high school and that had cost him.

"Maybe Tad had a little help?" Gerald suggested. Helga finally gave a little smile, picking up the napkin and waving it in front of her face. She sniffed once and fixed Gerald with a look.

"Why does she come to you? Even now, you say you still talk, why?"

Gerald grinned. A sad lopsided grin. "My baby girl could never get enough of me."

Helga groaned loudly as she fell back into her seat and then laughed, the tension broken. "You have always overestimated yourself Geraldo." She joked. "I think it's more that you could never get enough of her."

His grin grew wider as he pulled his plate back in front of him. "I'm willing to concede part of that."

* * *

Tad stayed until the meds the nurses gave his mother took effect and she fell asleep. Then he left the hospital and drove across town to the building his family owned.

Being in Hollywood and surrounded by the bright lights and young stars of the screen, even with him coming home once or twice since they'd moved out there, he'd forgotten that along with him getting older, his parent's had gotten older also.

It scared him to see his mother in the hospital bed, her hair streaked with grey. Parents were supposed to stay young forever, not get sick and definitely not end up in the hospital with old people problems. His parents weren't old people; they were his parents.

He parked in front of the building and got out. Things hadn't changed here either, except the store front looked like it'd gotten a new coat of paint.

Taking out the key he'd never returned to his parents, he unlocked the side door and stepped into the entryway of the building that led to the upstairs apartment. He locked the door and climbed the stairs trying to figure out just how in the hell they were going to get his mother up those stairs after he was discharged. Briefly he thought about just taking her to the house he and Helga had rented but quickly disregarded that idea. There was no way he would be able to survive with his mother at the house twenty- four/seven.

He reached the top of the stairs and the door to the apartment opened. His Dad stepped out and smiled.

"When did you get into town?"

"Last night," He let his Dad pull him into a hug and lead him into the interior of the place. "My first stop was to see Mom."

"How's she doing? I didn't get the shop closed until an hour ago."

"She's raising hell with the nurses, already loudly announcing that she's bored and wants to get out of bed."

"They must be giving her the good drugs then. You want something to drink?"

"That'd be great, yeah. I was thinking I'd bunk down here for the night? Save me time tomorrow to start on getting the stuff needed for Mom's discharge."

Ken Gumblethorpe pulled two bottles from the fridge and walked back through the kitchen, handing his son one.

"Did Helga come with you?"

"To town, yeah. She had her own things to do today. This is her first time back here since we left."

"How's she doing?"

Tad shrugged, twisting the cap off and taking a drink.

"As well as can be expected, I guess. I'll talk to her tomorrow after I get everything settled here."

"Thank you for doing this Tad. I appreciate it. I'm not sure how I could have handled…"

Tad put his bottle down. "Dad, hey." He took his shoulder and pulled him into a hug. "We'll get through this. We're Gumblethorpe's, we can get through anything. Mom will be home in a day or two, I'll help out until she's up and moving again. Hel's already offered to help if we need her to. We got this. Everything is going to be fine."

He was always good at spinning the positive of every situation. What he wasn't so good at was believing his own hype.

* * *

"What was up with that cryptic snap this morning?"

Anne hardly ever said hi on the phone, conversations with her usually just started with the conversation at hand. Ronnie found it refreshing.

"Aren't you still on set? It's early afternoon for you."

"We quit early, the director decided he didn't like the way the scenes were going and when we all left he and the writers were in a verbal tug of war over the script. Now, what's up?"

Ronnie sat cross legged on her bed, one arm clutched around her pillow.

"Problems at school again, people who think they know what's going on in my life. Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"You and Allen. You guys don't…you guys…we're friends, right? I mean, you're just not taking pity on my because I'm some sort of project or something, are you?"

"Where did this come from?"

"Something someone said today. That I'm just another fan who thinks I'm friends with famous people."

On the other side of the country Anne paced the kitchen floor in her apartment. "You listen to me Veronica, I don't give my phone number out to just anyone. And neither does Allen. I think I can speak for him when I say that we like you. And we consider you our friend. And if there was any way we could get to that side of the country right now to knock some sense in you, we would. For right now, remember what Joan told you. High school is only four years of your life, it'll all be over soon and none of it will matter. In your case, this is the last year."

"Thanks Anne. I know I sound ridiculous, but sometimes there's a little part of me that whispers that they're all making sense."

"Well, don't let Allen hear you talk like this, you know he'd drive you nuts trying to prove you wrong."

Ronnie laughed. "Would he ever."

"Now that you're back in your right mind, tell me about what's going on over on your side of the country? Has fall hit yet? Over here, fall means the temperatures get down to low seventies in the evening. "

* * *

AN: There seems to be some confusion with the opening snippets, so I thought I'd try to clarify. The italic in the beginning all happened in the past. This is part of the real story that happened in Hillwood High. The characters bounce between 14-17 throughout the story. So Arnold, and Helga and even Lila, Gerald, Tad and Rhonda later on aren't going to be the cool calm adults from Ever After or the rest of this story.

Thought I'd mention that.

Also, Thank you to those who reviewed. I appreciate it so much and I thank you from the bottom of my worn out writer's heart. And I also want to make a special mention to a guest reviewer- A Picky Reader. Dear Picky, I love you. Your review was just... Thank you.


	5. Chapter 5

" _You two are the most friend zoned people I've ever known."_

 _Their conversation stopped as both Helga and Tad gazed up questioningly at the person who'd made the statement. Helga shielded her eyes to get a better look at the guy._

" _Are you high?"_

 _They were sitting on a bench under one of the trees in the commons; their usual spot for lunch. The person in question, Sid, hunched his shoulders defensively._

" _No."_

" _You look high."_

" _Shut up Pataki, it's just taking off the edge."_

" _Taking off the edge of what?"_

" _What are you talking about Sid?" Tad interrupted knowing this could go on for the rest of their lunch hour; Sid was stoned enough to continue arguing about how he wasn't stoned and Helga was vindictive enough to keep egging him on. He likes Sid, no matter what the rumors between he, Stinky and Harold were, but he didn't envision the small window of quiet he got every day being taken away with mindless bickering. Sid looked at them both like he'd suddenly had memory loss and couldn't even remember why he'd walked towards them in the first place. Helga had already dismissed him from her mind and was finishing the sandwich Tad had brought for her when Sid snapped his fingers like he suddenly remembered._

" _Friend zoned. You two."_

 _Helga ignored him, knowing what was coming. Tad's gaze remained pleasant._

" _Don't believe in it."_

" _Dude, I heard what you did last week at Rhonda's party. You're like her little lap dog; she says jump and you jump, all so you might get a little taste of what she's passing out. You ain't never gonna get with that Curly. She thinks she's too good for you."_

 _Helga's eyes cut towards Tad, her turn now try to disengage the conversation should the need arise._

" _First, the name is Tad, not Curly. I stopped that ridiculous nickname in grade school. Second," Tad continued. "Rhonda is her own person. What I do or don't do for her is my business and mine alone. Third, whatever I do or don't do for her in no way obligates her to do any of the following: fall madly in love with me, sleep with me, or kiss me until I can't feel my toes. Anything I do for her is because I respect her, I like her and because we are friends."_

" _You are so far into the friend zone you think it's normal." Sid guffawed. He turned his attention to Helga was stopped by the ice-cold glare she was giving him._

" _If you value your life, don't even think about it." Her voice was as icy as her glare. "In fact, you should probably start making the trek towards your next class."_

" _Don't forget to stop by the cafeteria and pick up some chips," Tad added cheerfully._

 _Deciding it was better to leave before he was pounded by a furious Helga Pataki, Sid settled on one final scoff in their direction before hurrying across the commons towards the cafeteria. Helga watched him leave and then went back to her sandwich._

* * *

Tad walked into the house, tired and still worried. He'd gotten up early and had spent the entire morning and afternoon driving around and calling around to different places to make sure when his mother got out the next day she'd have everything she needed to heal comfortably at home. Arguing with insurance companies was much more frustrating than arguing with big name Hollywood producers.

His mother was set to come home the next morning, he and his father would go pick her up, get her to the apartment and settled and then Tad had volunteered to stay with her so his dad could keep the shop open. Just long enough until she got back on her feet without danger of a relapse. That was the plan, and he was damn well sticking to the plan. Already, he could feel the tendrils of the depression that was Hillwood creeping towards him.

He found Helga in the main dining room, her laptop and printer set up on the table. She was staring at the screen, her face contorted into a scowl.

"Who do we have to verbally extirpate?" He walked past her to the kitchen and pulled a bottle out of the refrigerator.

"We received an offer to work on Killian's Reef."

He walked back into the dining room and leaned over her shoulder to read the email as he twisted the cap off the bottle.

"Ugh. No thank you. If I'm voluntarily going to write teen drama it definitely isn't going to be something as trite as Killian's Reef. And especially not for that station. Let them flail on their own." He scanned the subject lines of their joint email and pointed towards the bottom. "What's that?"

Moving the mouse to the bottom of the list, she pulled up the email. The corner of Tad's mouth twitched upward.

"They want us to do a season of Last Breath?"

Helga pointed the mouse to another subject line. "And the WCB are asking if we'd be willing to write an episode of Urban Legends for Halloween."

Tad grinned. "Only if they let me add in our favorite character. I love messing with the hard-core shippers."

Helga looked up at him. "You are such a child."

"Hey, it's not my fault they made our favorite couple canon on accident. I just want closure and a chance to rub it into the viewers face one more time."

She chuckled as she clicked on the reply button. "I'm not sure if they can get the actress but I'll let them know we're open to the idea. Now, what about Last Breath?"

"Are you getting bored, Athena?" Tad asked as he took a drink.

"A bit. We've had almost five months off. I'm getting antsy."

He took another drink as he mulled it over. "I'm not opposed to doing a season of Last Breath. I'd love to do a horror anthology. Can we use our own actors?"

"I'm sure we can hash that over with the producer if we choose to do it."

"When did the email come in?"

"The other day."

He took another drink. "That gives us at least a day or two to discuss this before we show them an interest and start asking the hard questions. Mom's coming home tomorrow and honestly, I don't think I'm going to have enough time to pee much less think about whether or not we want to write an entire season's worth of freaky material. And you," he pointed the bottle's neck towards her. "How long have we been here and you haven't visited you know who yet?"

"We're only going on day three Tad, and I thought about it." Her eyes didn't leave the computer screen. "I just haven't found the right time."

He pulled the keys to the rental car from his jean pocket and tossed them onto the table in front of her. "Here. I'm telling you this is the right time. I'm in for the rest of the night, a rest before the beginning of the battle, if you will. I don't plan on using the car. Get dressed, get in the car, drive down into town and go knock on Arnold's door."

At her hesitation, he reached over and closed the top of the laptop and tried not to smile at the trapped cat look on her face.

"The door is going to open; he's going to take one look at you and I'm not going to see you until sometime tomorrow."

She finally stood up, giving him a dry look after his comment. That just urged him on.

"Wear something cute. Maybe a little sexy." He called after her as she walked up the stairs. "Remember, you're shooting for breakfast!"

"Screw off Tad!" Her voice came down from the second floor.

"That's your goal Hel!" he answered back, laughing.

He stood against the stairway railing, nursing his drink until she walked back down dressed in a pink sundress. He couldn't stop the grin as he handed her the keys he'd pulled off the table.

"Get out. Have fun. Rekindle. We're only here a month, and you're wasting days."

She hesitated once more and he gently pushed her towards the door. "Go."

"Fine! I'm going! Quit being so damn pushy!"

He followed her to the front door, watching her get into the car and waving happily as she drove off. It was almost an accomplishment. Shutting the door behind him, he wandered back into the dining room. Sitting in the chair Helga just vacated, he opened the laptop and looked at the emails. Sitting his bottle down beside him, he dropped the tab to the emails and opened another application. Sitting back, he queued up the first episode of last season's Last Breath to do some research. Hel wasn't the only one getting a little antsy.

* * *

It didn't matter how long she'd been gone from this lonely, perpetually dying town, she could still remember every street and landmark like the back of her hand. Each landmark held a story; good or bad, each street led to that story. The town was ripe with secrets and legends, Hillwood was its own urban legend, stories to be passed down to the next generation by their version of Fuzzy Slippers and the keeper of the tales.

On this boulevard of memories long gone, Helga's phone rang.

She looked at the face of her phone and smiled as she swiped the button.

"This is Hel."

The voice that answered in her Bluetooth was one that she heard in her dream for so many years and only recently heard on an almost daily basis. A voice that never failed to curl her toes and put a smile on her face no matter how her day had been previously.

"Daphne and the girls are all at Izzy's for a sleepover. So, I can talk without worrying about offending a-how did she put it- seventeen-year-old girl's delicate sensibilities."

She could feel the smile stretching across her face.

"An entire night alone?" she teased as she turned left onto a one-way side street. "Whatever will you do?"

"Maybe sock slide across the upstairs hallway?" he suggested. "Sit on the couch with a bag of chips and catch up on documentaries?"

"You could talk to me." She suggested, slowing for a stop sign. She looked down one side of the street and turned right. The long-ago flutter in her stomach she used to get when she'd sneak up the fire escape to peer cautiously in his skylight reappeared. She was planning something almost forbidden.

How would he react? The flutter in her stomach dropped like a lead weight to the cold uncertainty of fear. Her foot eased off the gas pedal as the house numbers counted down to the address she was given by Gerald.

"I could." He said. "Which sound much better than stuffy documentaries anyway."

She was going so slow; she was almost stopped. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She heard him sigh into the phone.

"I miss you." His voice was soft in her ear and her foot jerked, speeding up the car a little. She felt herself smiling again.

"Miss you too." She admitted.

"It sounds like you're out somewhere but maybe when you get home we could facetime for a bit?" he asked. "I know it sounds stupid but I want to see you."

The ice in her stomach disappeared and her foot pressed down further on the pedal. He wanted to see her. "I'm sure that could be arraigned."

The house was on her left. She parked and turned off the engine, looking at the house. A modest two story home with the soft glow of a light burning in the living room window. Pocketing the keys, she grabbed her wallet and got out of the car, shutting the door behind her.

"You home?" Arnold asked.

"Almost. Let me get into the house and then we can do this facetime thing." She was grinning like a fool as she walked across the street and up the walk to the house. She didn't see any movement but she could hear a cabinet door close on the other end. Taking a deep breath, she walked up the five steps to the porch and stood at the front door.

"Sour cream and onion or regular?" he asked.

"Definitely regular." She said and knocked on the door.

"Are you kidding me?" She could hear of the footfalls on the hard wood floor on the other side of the door walking towards her. She clicked the key fob to lock the car. "Someone's at my door, give me a second to get rid of them."

The front door opened and he was in front of her; a pair of sweat pants, an old college tee shirt, and bare feet. The phone was half away from his ear as he stood with one hand on the door staring at her as if she were a mirage. Her grin grew wider as she clicked off her phone.

"Hey football head. You said something about facetiming?"

"Holy…"

She was pulled into the house and the door shut behind her before she could take another breath. As the front door clicked shut she was pulled into a tight hug.

"You're here. You're actually here! How are you here? Why didn't you tell me?"

She couldn't answer any of his rapid-fire questions because as quickly as he stopped asking them, he pulled back from the hug and pulled her into a kiss. Her eyes fell closed and she melted into him, her arms wrapping around his shoulders.

She would never not get used to this feeling.

* * *

"Why is there never anything good to do in this town?" Alyssa almost wailed. Isabella was waving her hand over her freshly painted toenails, trying to get them to dry quicker.

"There's plenty of things to do in this town, you just prefer to sit in this room and whine about it."

"Why do we sit in our room and lament over always being bored?" Daphne asked. She was holding up two different shades of nail polish trying to figure out which would look better on her. "My Dad is forever talking about the stupid things he used to get up to when he was a kid."

"Just because you father used to do completely ridiculous things when we were all children doesn't mean we want you four out roaming the streets at night."

The four girls jumped as Izzy's mother's voice came from the open door.

"Did you ever do anything fun when you were a kid Mrs. Berman?" Alyssa asked. Patty leaned against the door frame, folding her arms against her chest.

"I'm afraid I was kind of a bore when I was younger. The most interesting things I ever did was take finishing classes with your mother," She nodded towards Ronnie, "Because my mother thought it would help me become refined. And I beat Isabella's father at arm wrestling in fifth grade. Other than that, I was the quiet one out of the group. In fact, I was only ever in the group because of Harold."

"My mom took a finishing class?" Ronnie asked. Patty grinned.

"It seemed your grandmother thought your mom was beginning to show…how can I put this…conduct unbecoming a proper young lady."

The four girls burst out into laughter.

"Did you always hang out with our parents?" Alyssa asked. "Well, not my mom but Uncle Gerald?"

Patty walked into the room and sat down on Isabella's bed. "Not much really until almost fifth grade. I befriended a couple of people earlier but I never really got full access until I became friends with Harold in fifth grade. The summer of that year Daphne's dad moved to San Lorenzo and the group dynamic changed." She looked thoughtful. "For as much as we did do from Fifth grade to when we all thought we were too cool to be lured by childish legends anymore, to hear Harold put it, the glory days seemed to be the years of third and fourth grade."

Daphne perked up. "Legends?"

"Hillwood is filled with them. From the cemetery to the old train yard to Elk's Island, this town is full of urban legends."

"Do you know any?" Daphne asked. Patty laughed and shook her head.

"Sorry girls, it doesn't matter how old we get, the rules state that if you want to hear the legends of Hillwood, you have to go to the Keeper of the Tales. And unless the mantle has been passed off, which I don't believe it has as of yet, you will have to hit up Lyss' Uncle Gerald."

"Uncle Gerald?" Daphne and Lyss said at the same time.

"Did Grandpa tell him the stories?" Alyssa asked.

"From what I hear, Gerald learned them from his man Fuzzy Slippers, who felt that he was the obvious choice to hand the legends down to."

"Who's Fuzzy Slippers?" Isabella asked. Patty shrugged.

"Only Gerald knows. And as far as I know, he's never told anyone."

"Why hasn't anyone ever told us this?" Izzy demanded.

"You mean to tell me that there are unusual things in this town that have never been explained and you guys have been sitting on them?" Daphne asked. "How unfair is that?"

"Sorry girls, it's for your own good."

"Oh heck no." Daphne pulled out her phone and started texting. Ronnie leaned over to peer over her shoulder.

"Who you texting?"

"My dad."

Patty snickered.

"I want to know why there are so many apparently amazing things that happened in this town that we don't know about."  
Patty stood up and headed towards the door. "Well, I'm sure he'll rush to text you back."

"What else would he be doing tonight?" Daphne sent her text and put her phone aside. Izzy was already on her laptop.

"What are you doing?" Lyss asked.

"This is the internet era. You can't tell me that some of these urban legends aren't on a blog somewhere."

* * *

 **AN: So...I think I missed a week. I have no excuse, I'm so sorry guys! To make up for it, I'm posting two chapters. For those who celebrate, Happy Turkey Day tomorrow! And here's hoping The Splat will show our holiday episode!**


	6. Chapter 6

" _Tad, have you seen Rhonda?"_

 _Tad halted in his steps, one foot half in his World History class, the other still in the hallway. The kid behind him had to make a sudden swerve so as not hit run right into him._

" _Say what now?" He stepped back into the hallway and headed towards where Nadine was standing. "I'm sorry Na, school is half over and I could have sworn I saw you two together this morning."_

" _That was this morning. She wasn't at lunch."_

 _He looked around at the quickly thinning hallway. All of the students were hurrying to their next class before the tardy bell rang. He looked back at her and her worried expression._

" _We're skipping fifth period then?"_

 _She smiled giving him his answer. He gestured towards the closest exit out of the school._

" _After you, my dear."_

 _He followed her down the music hallway, slipping through the back of the practice room and out into the courtyard._

" _I've tried all the places I know about," she told him as they walked towards the track. "Is there any other place you can think of?"_

 _He looked over at the covered announcers tower on the soccer field and grinned._

" _I have an idea. Come on."_

 _The two hurried across the field towards the soccer and track field. He ducked under the still open bleachers and opened the back door to the covered announcers tower. They climbed the stairs carefully reaching the top room of the tower._

 _In the corner, Rhonda sat on the floor reading a fashion magazine and listening to her MP3 player._

" _Rhonda!" Nadine shoved her books at Tad, who caught them with a little juggling, and hurried over to the teen who'd looked up from her magazine with a surprised look. "What are you doing up here?"_

 _Rhonda looked back at Tad who just shrugged._

" _I had a particularly bad third period and had to escape for a bit." Her eyes widened. "I missed lunch, didn't I?"_

" _There wasn't anything particularly good in the cafeteria anyway." Nadine said, sitting down beside her. "I thought you'd gotten sick or something and went home early."_

" _I'm so sorry, Nadine dear, I didn't think."_

" _It's okay. You want some company? We can't actually go back to class."_

 _Rhonda smiled. "Of course. Stick around, I have a couple more magazines in my bag."_

" _That's okay, I have my homework." She looked around for her books. Tad approached them, handing her books to her before he sat on the floor._

" _So, are we doing hair? Painting nails? Talking about boys?" he teased. Rhonda gave him a look over the top of her magazine._

" _Hush Tad."_

 _He grinned. "Anything for you."_

* * *

Five days.

Five days in and already his mother was making him rethink his agreement to come home and help his parents.

He didn't even have Helga to bounce off of, which was his own damn fault. He was the one who pushed her out the door and into Arnold's arms for the last two days. Apparently, he'd been right and Arnold had taken the news of a surprise visit well.

He pulled his convertible into the parking lot of the local grocer and groaned as his phone rang again. He tapped his Bluetooth as he climbed out of the car.

"You've got Tad." He answered.

"Tad, oh thank God. I've been trying to get ahold of you for days."

He frowned, recognizing the familiar voice of Anne Cummings, one of the stars of their now ended TV series and easily his favorite actress, although he'd never tell her that.

"Well you didn't try very hard. My phone has been on me for the last week."

"Well I didn't call your cell, I wanted to use that as a last resort. Instead I've been trying to track you down at all the usual places."

"Anne, I'm not in LA. What's so important that you had to call my cell?"

He walked into the store, grabbing a small basket at the entrance and headed towards the produce section. He picked out the grapefruits his mother just had to have as Anne rambled in his ear about contracts and insist and producers. He stopped dead in his tracks in the middle of the snack aisle as he heard something that caught him off guard.

"Wait, back up Anne. He wants you to do what?"

"He says it's in my contract and if I want to be big, I have to do this."

"Anne, dear, you were on the most popular TV show this decade. At any time did Hel or I make you wear anything less than a swimsuit top?"

"No."

"Then your producer is full of shit. Listen, you still have your copy of the contract?"

"Of course. I didn't forget everything you taught us."

"Good, I'll text you a number, fax over a copy of your contract and I'll look it over. And then I'll have our lawyer look it over." He pulled a box of fig newtons off the shelf and then grabbed another box as an afterthought. "Because I'm willing to bet there's shit in there about any topless or nude scenes and all he wants is the chance to say he was able to get the great Anne Cummings naked."

"You're the best Tad. Don't let anyone tell you different."

"Yeah, yeah."

"Where are you at, by the way?"

"Not your business."

She laughed. "Fine. When you decided to come home, call me. We miss you and Hel."

"It's been five months."

"And it was five days a week for four years. We miss you guys."

"Fine. I'll text you the number." He tapped his Bluetooth again and sighed. He and Hel probably did need to have lunch with all of them if for any reason than to knock some sense into all of them about the importance of finding a good contract lawyer and making smart choices…

"Tad?"

He froze in mid step, the voice behind him so familiar. It was bound to happen. They were going to be here for a month. He was just hoping it would have happened closer to him leaving this town. Spinning on his heel, he turned, his easy smile fixed in place.

"Ronnie. How are you doing darling?"

The dark-haired teen gave him a delighted grin. He was happy to see her out of her shell.

"Good. What are you doing here?"

"Visiting. My parents live here."

Her eyes grew wide behind her glasses. "Really? I didn't know that?"

"We didn't really advertise. Hel and I tend to be private people."

"Hel's here too?"

He shrugged, still holding his basket.

"I needed the back up."

"So, if your parents live here now, did you live here?"

"Of course he did Ronnie," The cultured drawl made his heart skip and his palms damp and suddenly he knew exactly how Hel has felt when she spotted Arnold in their studio that first time last year. He pulled his sunglasses off, making sure his face was fixed in his easy smile.

There, half a grocery aisle away from him, dressed in a light summer dress, her raven hair pulled back in a headband, was his goddess. His reason for living in high school. His one love, his never-ending pain, his beautiful conundrum.

One side of her lip quirked upward, the only hint of any emotion on her face. "Hello Thaddeus."

Trying to maintain his aura of calm, he merely raised an eyebrow in return. "Hey Rhon."

* * *

Four years of being the elite of the elite in Hillwood High as well as the twelve years of courtship, marriage and everything leading up to her divorce had taught Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd how to remain calm and collected in the face of upheaval and change.

And right now, there was a huge instance of upheaval and change standing on the other side of the snack aisle in front of her daughter.

Since her daughter had returned from LA last summer, she'd been more…open would be the word Rhonda would use. No longer hiding behind her books, Veronica had stepped into the light. Maybe not the spotlight as her mother had at her age, but she was definitely out and much more social that she had been for the first seventeen years of her life.

A big part of it might have been the fact that she had two of Hollywood's popular teen stars' personal cell numbers in her phone, but at this point Rhonda didn't care what it was. If befriending Anne Cummings and Allen Adams, no matter who they portrayed in the popular TV show, meant that her daughter blossomed, then Rhonda would accept the consequences.

Even if said consequences were standing seven feet in front of her, wearing overly expensive sunglasses and looking like liquid sin.

Thaddeus Gumblethorpe, by his own admission, had been her favorite whipping boy in high school. But between them, he was also someone she knew she could trust implicitly. No matter what happened, how drunk she got at her parties, no matter where she was, what stupid decisions she made, if Tad was around, she knew he would make sure she made it home safe.

Her party the spring of her Junior year where it was rumored that Tad punched Grant Grissim hard enough that he was out cold for the remainder of the night and the ensuing rumors that followed him around until Graduation was enough to prove to her and anyone who got near enough to understand that even though Rhonda was her own person, she was protected and Tad would not allow anyone to harm her.

Watching him pull off his sunglasses and give her a quick gaze, she wondered if that still held true. She also wondered what had happened to her adorable little madman. Time had been very, very good to him.

Veronica stood between them, looking back and forth at each other.

"Mom, you know Tad and Hel?"

Rhonda had the feeling that suddenly she'd earned a barrel full of cool mom points with her daughter.

"We went to school together." Straightening her spine and refusing to allow Tad to see even a hint of how his appearance had affected her, she gave him a cool smile.

"How's your mother?"

"She'll live. Cracked her pelvis, is driving the nurses nuts."

"In typical Gumblethorpe style, I assume?"

He gave her a lopsided grin, the same one she remembered from high school. And suddenly she could see her Taddy in his face.

"You assume correctly."

The theme to Psycho broke the moment and he pulled his phone from his pocket. "Speaking of my mother…"

He tapped the Bluetooth in his ear. "Hey mom. Give me a sec, yeah?" He tapped the mute button on his phone and smiled a smile Rhonda knew was the one he used with heads of productions companies.

"Sorry ladies, I have to take this. Ronnie, I'll be in town for a while, I'm sure I'll see you around." Her daughter got a real smile. "In fact, I'm pretty positive of that considering Hel came with and you're Daphne's best friend."

His eyes flicked up to her and her stomach clenched. The smile remained on his face for only a second more before disappearing. "Rhon, always a pleasure seeing you."

His finger had pressed the unmute button before she could answer and he was turning away speaking with his mother. Rhonda tightened her grip on the basket she held, trying to keep her hands from shaking.

"That is so cool," Veronica was saying. "Were you friends with them in high school? I can't believe you know Tad and Hel."

Rhonda forced herself to continue their shopping, mentally swearing to phone Arnold the moment they got home and give him a verbal lashing. If Helga was here too, then he had to know and it was simply unfair for him not to have given her a head up.

* * *

 **Ronnie: TAD AND HEL ARE IN TOWN!**

 **Daphne: I just found out today! I had no idea!**

 **Ronnie: Wait. How did you find out?**

 **Daphne: Awkward story. So, came home today and Hel was in the kitchen. With my dad. I'd like to say they were making lunch, but I couldn't tell over the cannodling going on.**

 **Ronnie: OMG, you walked in on your dad and Hel? I wonder if that's what Lyss and Izzy have to go through?**

 **Daphne: IDK, all I know is that it was super awkward. At least they were dressed.**

 **Ronnie: Were they? I mean, she was wearing her clothes, right?**

 **Daphne: RONNIE! DON'T MAKE ME THINK THINGS LIKE THAT! It's bad enough I have to deal with the bevy of guys my mom goes through, I don't want to think about my dad doing that stuff too!**

 **Ronnie: So what do you know?"**

 **Daphne: Nothing yet. I kind of squeaked and ran for my room. I guess I'll find out later.**

* * *

She patiently waited until they returned home from the store, staying silent as her daughter pulled out her phone and immediately began texting Daphne the moment they got into the car, whatever fight they'd had forgotten in the now exciting new information. She listened to Ronnie's excited mutterings and wondered if somehow her knight had been passed down a generation. She managed to contain herself until she put all the groceries up and made sure Ronnie was in her room before she called Arnold's cell phone. He answered on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"You've been holding out on me, Shortman," she said by way of greeting.

"Hi Rhonda. I have?"

"A little birdie told me that a certain blonde haired woman that we both know has come to visit you."

"Helga? Who told you she was here?"

She heard the change of tone in his voice when he said the blonde's name. She bit at her lip trying to keep her voice stern. "Tad. We ran into him at the grocery store. With no warning, mind you."

"Oh crap!" She heard a door close on his end. "Rhonda, I am so sorry. I was so excited she was here, she told me what happened with Tad's mom and I didn't even think…I am so sorry, you're right, I should've called you. Are you…" he paused. "Was it okay?"

"It was awkward." She admitted. "But it's over and I'm sure he'll be much too busy with his mother to bother seeking me out. I'm not sure if he even wants to."

"We're talking about the same Tad Gumblethorpe right?" his tone was teasing. "Your personal dark knight in high school, the man who let you be you but made sure the entire school body knew unequivocally that you would never be harmed on his watch. The same man who co-wrote an entire television series depicting your character, by your terms, much nicer than you actually were?"

"Are you trying to make a point Arnold?"

"I think I've pretty much made it. You're here, Tad's here. Tad knows you're here. I'm willing to bet you run into him a couple more times before he leaves town."

She sighed. It was supposed to be easy. One meeting, now over and he'd leave. "How long is he in town?"

"At least a month. Until his Mom is able to move around without assistance."

"Wonderful."

* * *

Tad was sitting in the living room going over Anne's contracts when he heard the front door open and close.

"You finally decide to come home?" He called out, not lifting his eyes from the papers. "Or are you just here to pick up new underwear?"

"Shut up." A couple more footsteps and Helga appeared in the living room, crossing over and almost falling onto the overstuffed chair next to the couch with an audible 'oof'. She watched him silently for a moment before cocking her head towards the papers in his hands. "What's that?"

"This," he waved the papers. "Is Anne Cumming's contract for movie she is currently working on. A contract that says nothing about nude and/or topless scenes."

Helga raised an eyebrow. "And why do you have it?"

"Because I got a call this afternoon from her telling me the director wants her to do a topless scene and threatened her with breach of contract when she raised a concern."

"What?" She sat up in the chair and snatched the papers from Tad's hand. "Are these director's complete idiots? Do they think that we just released these kids into the wild after being sequestered for four years without any Hollywood life training? Do we need to call them all in for one last meeting on how to read a damn contract?"

Tad grinned. This was why he loved working with her, they were too often of one mind when it came to their work.

"I was wondering the same thing. I told Anne to send it to me and I would send it to our contract lawyer to go over and help rake this jerk over the coals."

"I'd tell her to just quit. And then spin it before he tried to save face."

"I'll shoot an email to Del and ask her to reach out to Anne. Just in case." He picked up the laptop sitting next to him on the couch and started writing an email. Helga looked over a couple more pages before tossing the papers onto the small table beside them.

"We need to talk about the offers." She said.

"You've been thinking?" he prompted, still typing.

"A little. I want to call Bennie and confirm that we can bring back Cat for one episode and see if we can get Maggie to agree to reprise her role before we agree to do that one."

"I agree wholeheartedly. Maggie's Twitter account seems to hint that she'd be willing to take up the mantel again."

"And Last Breath?"

"I've already sent an email to the producer to see what we're allowed."

Helga sat back in the chair. "I had a couple of ideas. Like maybe a campfire tales type of season. A haunted town, a tale of hometown urban legends told in a cemetery, with the overlying arc of a vengeful ghost who kills anyone who gets in her way."

Tad grinned. "You mean like the ghost bride and the headless carriage driver?"

Helga returned his grin. "Or the star-crossed lovers who died at the old high school?"

"Or the haunted subway?"

Helga laughed. "Wheezin' Ed."

"Yes! We need to put Wheezin' Ed in this if we do it. Only we'd have to make him much creepier and deadlier or it won't work." He finished his email and moved the laptop beside him. "I like the idea. Now we just wait for the producer to email us back. If we do this, we're going to have to start writing soon."

"We can gather ideas while we're here and start actual script writing once we get home."

Tad grinned. "So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, we have our next projects?"

"It seems we do. Which gives us more time to procrastinate on what we're going to do after that."

"Correction. It gives us time to brain storm new and brilliant ideas."

Helga heaved herself up off the chair and walked across the expansive room towards the kitchen. "Want a drink?"

"A Yahoo if there's any in there!" he yelled and snickered as he heard her annoyed sigh in response.

"So when did you talk to Anne?" She asked from the kitchen. Tad grimaced. He knew what was coming next. He remembered how quickly gossip raced around this town. And since he'd seen Ronnie who happened to be best friends with Daphne whose father just happened to be in a relationship with his best friend, he could bet that if she didn't already know about his run-in, she would soon.

"Um, she called me today while I was at the grocery story picking up fig newtons for Mom. Which, by the way, if she ever calls and asks you to pick her up some, do not-I repeat- do not give in and buy that woman any. She's been home two days and already she's griping about the severe lack of cookies in the house."

He could hear the snicker from the kitchen. Time to bite the bullet.

"Funny thing. I ran into Ronnie at the store too. With her mom."

There was silence for a moment and then the hurried steps coming back from the kitchen. Helga reappeared and tossed him a bottle of Yahoo. He caught it with a grin.

"You bought some! Bless your heart!"

"You saw Rhonda at the grocery store and you didn't lead with that?" She sat back down in the chair and leaned forward. "Spill. Now."

"There isn't really anything to talk about. I'd just gotten off the phone with Anne and heard my name being called. I turned around and Ronnie was there. And then her mom came around the corner. We said hi, she asked about my mom and we went our separate ways. End of story."

"Thaddeus Ignatius Gumblethorpe-"

"Dear God woman! You promised never to use that hated name!"

"You mean to tell me that you ran into the one transcendental joy and never-ending pain of your existence and you just said hi and went on with your life? I know you Tad and I know you with her. You didn't spend four years of your life becoming her secret protector and confidant or spend another four years of our adult life writing a hit television show to just say 'hi, how are you' and cut out of a grocery store. Now, cut out your self-proclaimed hard-hearted, I-don't-give-a-shit attitude you're trying to adapt here and tell me what really happened."

"Damn, someone got pushy now that she's happy, didn't she?"

Helga folded her arms across her chest. "Being a smart ass isn't going to make me leave Tad. It might make me punch you, but it's not going to make me leave."

"Fine. You want to know how I felt? Like someone just punched me in the gut. Like my heart just slammed hard into my ribcage. Like the roof popped off the damn grocery store and the sun shone down on aisle five." His arms were flailing wildly. "It hurt like hell, I forgot how to breathe and suddenly, for one tiny second, I was plain old Curly Gumblethorpe again, groveling at the feet of the powerful goddess that was Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd. And then I remembered who I was and tried like hell to hold on as tightly as I could while I tried to spit out an intelligent sentence or three. While simultaneously answering Ronnie's questions. Which, by the way, I probably gave too much information away while trying to be smooth and cool. Do you know how damn hard that is? Of course, you do!"

"I do." Helga's voice was quiet. "But I also know you Tad. You, who was always so much braver than I. You, who gave exactly zero cares about what anyone else thought of you, just as long as Rhonda thought of you. You who became her shadow, her silent protector, her secret confidant in the whirlwind that was the chaos of our teenaged lives. I know the you now, the one who-I don't know when- will meet with her again before we leave, just so you can look upon her and hear her voice say your name just once more before returning to California. The you that will more than likely tell her exactly what you feel for her, no questions asked, no expectations."

Tad fell back against the back cushions of the couch in defeat. "I hate you."

Helga grinned. "No you don't."

"No I don't."

* * *

Ronnie sat in her room, the TV on low and the leftovers of finished Calculus homework on her bed. Her phone was in her hand and she was on a private group message Facebook.

 **Anne: I'm thinking of dropping out of this movie.**

 **Allen: My part is almost over, three more days of spacesuits and airlocks.**

 **Allen: Wait…why?**

 **Ronnie: Is it getting worse?**

 **Allen: You two been talking without me? What the hell, ladies?**

 **Ronnie: You were busy.**

 **Anne: Yep. I finally broke down and called Tad today. Sent him over a copy of my contract. Just waiting for him or his lawyer to call me back.**

 **Allen: How is Tad?**

 **Anne: Sounded busy.**

 **Ronnie: I saw him today in the grocery store.**

 **Allen:….**

 **Anne: What?!**

 **Allen: He's in your hometown?**

 **Anne: You're at home right?**

 **Ronnie: Yeah. Said he's taking care of his mom for a while. She fell and hurt herself. Hel's here too. Daphne said she got home the other day and caught her dad and Hel in the kitchen making tacos.**

 **Allen: Is that code for something? ;)**

 **Anne: Yes. Tacos.**

 **Anne: Hel's there too? No wonder I couldn't find anyone this past week. They're hiding on me!**

 **Allen: This will not stand!**

 **Ronnie: Want me to tell them something? I can message Daphne who can tell Hel the next time she's at the house. She says Hel's been there a lot.**

 **Anne: Is it wrong that I find that hella cute?**

 **Allen: Nope. I'm texting Becky now to tell her the good news.**

 **Anne: While Allen's spreading gossip, how's school going Ron?**

 **Ronnie: Meh. It's my last year and then I can get out of this lion's den of backstabbers. I think I liked it better when I was hidden behind a book and unaware of the lack of brain cells in my school. I think everyone liked it better when I was hidden behind a book.**

 **Anne: Sweetie, it's almost over. But don't wish it away too fast. Your last year is supposed to be the best. Who knows what could happen.**

 **Allen: Becky says Woot! And I think there was a small happy dance happening. The rest of the crew should know within the hour. Rebecca Poulson, fastest fingers on the West Coast.**

 **Allen: What's going on?**

 **Allen: I, for one, am now damn curious what Hillwood really looks like.**

 **Ronnie: It looks like a little town an hour from the big city. Nothing much.**

 **Allen: Hmmmm, one day, I'm demanding a road trip just to see the town we relived on set for four years.**

 **Anne: It would be interesting to see.**

 **Ronnie: Anytime guys. I could totally find a place to set you both up.**


	7. Chapter 7

" _Why the hell aren't we just dating?"_

 _Helga looked up from her history homework. Across the table, Phoebe actually closed her AP Calculus book and looked over at Helga as if to say "I gotta hear this one."_

 _Helga looked from Phoebe to Tad, who'd asked the question._

" _Are you high?"_

" _Seriously Hel, why in the name of Queen Elizabeth are we not dating? I mean, we're best friends, we're both attractive people, we have so much in common already. We've seen each other in our underwear…Phoebe included."_

 _Phoebe raised her hands. "Don't bring me into this! I have a boyfriend."_

" _First off, how dare you Sir, invoke the name of Queen Elizabeth into this conversation. Second off," Helga ticked off another finger. "We're both in love with unattainable people and keep foolishly hoping beyond hope that one day, they'll see us and realize they're madly in love with us. And when that time comes Thaddeus Gumblethorpe, do you really want to be dating a manic-depressive blonde who knows all your dirty secrets?"_

 _Phoebe looked over at Tad as if to say, "Explain that one, genius."_

" _If we were dating, I wouldn't have eyes for anyone else but you, my love."_

 _Phoebe gave a disbelieving snort._

" _I could!"_

" _Not," Phoebe retorted. "Even I have problems believing that line."_

 _Helga leaned forward. "So, barring the fact that we are not attracted to each other, have zero romantic chemistry, and are best friends. If, after all those odds, we were to actually take leave of our senses and date, you mean to say that the moment the princess crooked her finger and said Tad, I need you, you wouldn't drop me like a hot potato to do her bidding?"_

 _He leaned back in his chair and scoffed, putting a hand to his chest. "What kind of boyfriend do you take me for dear lady? I am hurt, nay, insulted that you are questioning my integrity!"_

 _The door to Slaussen's opened and Rhonda and Nadine entered talking about something. Rhonda caught his eyes and waved towards him._

" _Tad, come here a minute."_

 _He closed his book and stood up. Helga snorted._

" _Insulted, eh?"_

" _To be fair, we are not dating as of yet. Be right back ladies,"_

 _Helga and Phoebe watched his walk towards the two women._

" _So," Phoebe said. Helga grinned._

" _Hot potato much?"_

" _Indeed."_

* * *

It took a week. One week for Rhonda to finally crack.

She sat in her office, sketches, fabric and color boards surrounding her and the only thing her mind kept going back to was Tad.

The way the salmon button down blended perfectly with the dark pressed jeans he was wearing. The way his hair was styled in a devil-may-care fashion that looked professional yet gave the appearance of being able to jump in the convertible and take a drive up the coast. The ridiculously expensive sunglasses he hooked into the top button of his shirt, the equally ridiculously expensive watch he glanced at right before he took his leave from them.

The way that, for one brief moment, his dark eyes looked at her like they used to so long ago before they were quickly shuttered into a gaze that was bland and professional.

Almost the same look she gave to her co-workers on a daily basis.

A knock on her office door pulled her out of her thoughts. Her assistant had poked her head in.

"Hey Rhonda, Greg from merchandising wants to know when the Marbanzo line is supposed to come in. Apparently, we have people asking already."

She looked at her computer and pulled up a program. "Delivery is two weeks from tomorrow, however, we don't roll out the new line until three days later. We have to clear the space and place the line."

"So, I'll tell him in about three weeks, then."

"That would be it. Oh and…" She pulled up another program and looked at it. "Ask Greg when he wants the fall line of Zyra out of the stores. It's September and the winter line needs to be in already. We're wasting money on stuff that's already past it's sell by date."

"Got it."

"And Meghan?"

She poked her head back in.

"I'm taking the rest of the day off. If anyone needs me they can get me on my cell."

"Gotcha. Have a nice afternoon."

Shutting down her computer, she grabbed her purse and jacket. She wasn't going to get anymore work finished today anyway, might as well do something about it.

Her heels clicked across the floor as she left her office and headed towards the elevator. First home to change and then to the dry cleaners. Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd was never one to moon over a guy, no matter who he was. The best way to get over this was to face it head on.

* * *

In his line of work, he dealt with petulant actors, over-demanding studio execs, bloodthirsty lawyers and diva producers. He was used to working with over demanding and crabby people on an hourly basis, it's what he was good at, it was his specialty.

But his mother was driving him crazy.

He wasn't sure if it was because it was his mother or if the Gumblethorpe's just knew how to find that one little chink in the armor and dig in until they drove each other nuts.

"But I'm bored with talk shows and soap operas." Aggie whined trying to get comfortable on the couch. "There's nothing on, and you won't get me any more fig newtons."

"Are you kidding?" Tad exclaimed, almost losing his patience. He was so close. "You have an entire shelf full of nothing but DVD's you haven't watched yet, there are two full websites with nothing but movies and television shows spanning almost seventy years' worth of entertainment. And you've gone through three packages of fig newtons in a week, so no, I'm not buying you any more until next week."

The doorbell rang.

"If you were a good son you'd buy me some." His mother reasoned, her hand's resting primly on her lap. "Your father would."

"I'm about ready to make Dad come up here and I'll work out the remainder of the shop's hours open because you are driving me bonkers."

The doorbell rang again and Tad groaned. He walked towards the front door.

"You're over-exaggerating. I am an angel. And I'll happily work for your father, if you'd let me off this damn couch."

"Woman!" Tad threatened. "You can't even make it to the bathroom without pain. I am not letting you anywhere near stairs."

He grabbed the door handle, giving the door a hard yank as he finished yelling at his mother.

"What?" he snarled at the person at the door and froze, color draining from his face.

Rhonda stood at the entryway, the surprise on her face freezing her motions.

"Is this a bad time?"

He schooled his features quickly, smiling casually. "I wasn't expecting company."

"I spoke with your father and he said you were upstairs." She explained, an eyebrow raising.

"Tad, who is it?" his mother called from the living room. "And more importantly, do they have fig newtons?"

Tad's carefully schooled face crumpled. Rhonda hid an amused grin as he twisted to look back into the living room.

"No! Nobody has fig newtons for you. You're on detox. And don't even think about calling Hel for any because she's already been forewarned."

"Why are you being so mean to me? And who's at the door?"

"Nobody for you so don't worry about it."

"I'm telling your father you're being horrible to me."

He twisted back. "Sorry. My mother's still on bed rest and bored stiff. Her new hobby is seeing how long it takes to make me lose my mind."

"What's her record so far?"

He grinned. "Three hours, twenty-three minutes."

"She's losing her touch."

"To be fair, I haven't been back home in about four years either. There's only so much practice one gets while talking on the phone. Now, what can I do for you Ms. Wellington-Lloyd. Or should I say Mrs. Montague?"

"Your mother comes by it honestly," she retorted. "I was wondering if I could speak with you for a moment."

"Of course. You can even have several moments. God knows I could use a break from her."

On cue, Aggie's voice echoed into the open doorway. "Is that a female voice I hear? Are you bringing girls over to the house Thaddeus?"

"Oh, she thinks she's funny." He muttered. "Excuse me for a moment."

Leaving the door open he walked back into the living room.

"Are you leaving me for a younger model?" The wail was melodramatic. "I see, now that I'm broken you want to move on!"

Rhonda couldn't hold back a snicker.

"Mother, I will be back in five minutes. Do not, I repeat, do not leave this couch for any reason. If I come back and find you not here, I swear I will chain you to the chair tomorrow."

"What if I have to go to the bathroom?"

"It's five minutes' woman!"

She was still giggling when he walked out into the hallway, shutting the door behind him.

"Sure, laugh at my pain."

"I thought that's why you got into showbiz," she said, the smile still on her face.

"Ha, ha. I'd offer you a seat but that would involve either the kitchen or the back balcony, both of which would involve going back through the house and dealing with my mom."

"I'm fine, thank you." She clasp her hands in front of her because a Wellington-Lloyd did not fidget. "I don't want to take up too much of your time. I just wanted to thank you."

He leaned against the wall, arms crossed against his chest. An eyebrow rose questioningly.

"For Veronica. Since her trip, she'd been a different person. If I'd known it would take a trip to LA to pull her out of her shell, I would've gone years ago." She smiled cautiously. "Although I suspect it's less the trip to LA and more who she met there. Anne and Allen have been more than nice to her."

The eyebrow rose higher. "She still talks to them? Huh, she must have left a mark." He gave a shrug. "Ronnie is a great kid. And Anne and Allen are great kids too, if not a little private. That might be why they all get along."

"Ronnie has always been a quiet child. She's more at home in books than in the mall."

His mouth twitched to a half grin. "That must've been frustrating for you."

"Not at all. I've changed also since high school. More so since Ronnie's been born. My work life is my work life and my home life is completely different. Different responsibilities meant I had to grow up." She smiled mischievously. "I am completely different from Brooke nowadays."

To his credit, he didn't even flinch. "You were always completely different from Brooke."

"Brooke was much nicer for one."

Tad sighed heavily and pushed himself from the wall. "I'm going to give you the same line I gave Arnold. All characters on Ever After are not in any way resembling any persons living or dead. Any resemblance therefore is completely coincidental."

Rhonda laughed, waving a hand at him. "Please, I'm not going to sue. But I also know enough of the double speak to know when you're feeding me a line Thaddeus Gumblethorpe."

"I prefer to call it protecting my investment."

She studied him, still smiling. "It's really good to see you Taddy."

The eyebrow went up again, followed by an amused smirk. "You know you're the only one who's ever been allowed to call me that."

"I know." She opened her purse and pulled out a card. "Here."

He took the embossed card and glanced at it before looking back up at her. "Have your people call my people?"

"No. That's my personal cell number. I'd like to talk again before you leave. Maybe over coffee?"

Tad slapped a hand against his chest. "Why Mrs. Montague, are you asking me out on a coffee date?"

"Let's say…reunion." She turned and started walking towards the stairs. "After that…who knows. And Tad?"

"Yes?"

She winked. "It's Wellington-Lloyd."

Tad watched her walk down the stairs, not moving until he heard the downstairs entrance door close. He wasn't sure when the tables got turned on him or when he'd lost control of the complete conversation.

And…was she…did she just flirt with him?

He looked back down at the embellished vellum business card and saw she was right. The card had Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd on it, followed by the company she worked for and her work number. On the back was her cell number written in her handwriting. Which meant she had planned to give this to him. Or it was for someone else at one time and she still had it in her purse.

Tucking the small card into his back pocket, he opened the door to his childhood home and stepped back in.

The television was still on and his mother was sound asleep on the couch, exhausted from spending the afternoon tormenting him. Either that or she subconsciously knew that he now had someone new to torment him. He tucked the throw blanket over her legs and walked towards the back patio, opening the patio door and stepping out onto it. The afternoon was warm, with a heavy air that hinted that there might be rain in the near future. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he dialed a number. After two rings, Helga answered.

"What's up?"

"I screwed up."

"What did you screw up?"

He rubbed his forehead. "Rhonda came over. To my parent's house. She gave me her cell number." He sighed. "Help. I think I've completely lost control of this situation."

* * *

"I'm in over my head."

"Hello to you too."

I'm serious Arnold, I've lost control of this situation. I have no idea what to do."

"First, have we moved past starting a conversation with 'Hello' in this society?"

"Arnold!"

"Second, and I don't mean this in any way to be rude, but why are you calling me about your personal dealings all of a sudden? You are the most private person I know. It took you three years and a bottle of wine to tell me about your divorce. And that's only after Lila finally left me."

"Because I no longer have close friends I can call about boy problems anymore and since you are currently in a relationship with the best friend of my current boy problem, that makes you the friend that I call when I've made bad decisions by proxy."

Arnold chuckled on the other end of her phone. "Fair enough. What bad decision did you make?"

Rhonda went silent as she drove down the road towards her house. Calling Arnold was almost an automatic response once she got into her car. She needed to talk to someone and she was dialing his number before she even realized what she was doing. He was right, as a rule she was very private with her life. And as far as she knew, outside her parents, Arnold was the only person who knew the entire story of her divorce to Dashiell. Her entire life after her ex-husband had been carefully plotted out and planned, no room for alterations. And Thaddeus Gumblethorpe coming back into her life was a huge alteration.

"Rhonda?" She'd been silent long enough to make him wonder if after her rapid explanation of why she was calling, she'd just given up and hung up the phone.

"Sorry. I gave my cell number to Tad."

"You…gave your number to Tad." He repeated dryly.

"I might have flirted a bit too."

Arnold laughed, but it was humorless.

"Rhonda, we make quite a pair."

"Ugh!" she yelled in the safety of her car, her windows rolled up so nobody else could hear her breakdown. "Arnold! What am I doing? Why do I revert back to the Rhonda from high school around him? I have a plan in life. Why does he make me want to forget my plan?"

This time the laugh was full of mirth. "Whoa, you just gave him your number and flirted a bit. You're allowed to flirt Rhonda, you aren't dead. And it's not like you're planning to marry him and move to California."

"I suggested coffee."

"Is the coffee following dinner?"

"No!" She pulled into her driveway and put the car in parks, and promptly dropped her head onto the steering wheel. "What am I doing?"

"It sounds like you just asked a man out to coffee. Congratulations."

"Arnold…" she growled, her head still on the steering wheel. He laughed again.

"Rhonda, quit overthinking it. Tad was one of your good friends a long time ago. You're just having coffee with an old friend and you're catching up, that's all."

"Like you and Helga?"

Arnold sighed on the other end. "Helga and I…we have always been complicated. She was my best friend but it always ran deeper than that. We've just reached the inevitable conclusion of our story." He was silent for a moment. "Unless you're telling me there was more to you and Tad's friendship?"

"No. I don't think so. I mean, Tad was a person I knew I could trust and granted he grew into his looks during high school. And now…"

"Okay, I don't need to hear about how cute Tad is."

"I may have…thought about it once or twice in high school." She admitted. "But, I never would have entertained the notion any further."

"So, my suggestion is go to coffee. Talk about old times, laugh, flirt, have fun. Chances are you'll both leave that meeting remembering each other fondly and that'll be it. But," He added teasingly. "If there does end up being something else, he's here for a month. Get it out of your system and move on."

Rhonda laughed straightening in her seat. "You know what the funny part of that is? If I still talked to Nadine, I have a suspicion that she would say the exact thing to me."

* * *

"I loathe French 4." Daphne muttered darkly, going over the notes scattered on her bed again. On the floor, leaning against the bed, Ronnie was working on her Calculus homework.

"You volunteered to take that," Isabella stated matter of factly. "I, however, did not agree to take AP World History."

Alyssa turned around in the desk chair in Daphne's room, spinning slowly and ignoring the Math book on the desk.

"So how weird is it to have the producer of our favorite television show in your kitchen making dinner with your Dad?" she asked.

"I expected her to look different." Isabella said.  
Ronnie looked up at her. "What did you expect her to look like?"

Isabella shrugged. "I don't know. Just not that, I guess."

"How weird is it that they went to school here?" Alyssa asked.

"She knows your Mom and Uncle," Daphne said.  
"I know. It's weird," Alyssa insisted and gasped. "What if, Ever After was based on our parent's lives?"

"Don't be silly." Isabella insisted. "They can't do that. First off, my parents would know. Second, isn't that against the law or something?"

"It depends," Ronnie said, going back to her homework. "It could be liable or slander, but then someone would have to prove that it's all false and bad. And I'm sure there's some sort of copyright laws or something regarding using real life situations in television shows. Movies have to have the based on true events disclaimer."

Daphne had frozen on her bed, staring at her friends in horror. Alyssa spun around in the chair once again.

"I guess. Plus, that would be really weird. And I don't know if our parents know as many people that were in the cast of Ever After. I'm not sure half those other people existed."

"Your Dad seems happy." Isabella said, changing the subject. Daphne relaxed.

"Yeah, he is. Which is why I don't say anything. Even if it is a little awkward to see my Dad acting like a teenager when Hel's around, I'm not going to be the one to begrudge his happiness."

"I think it's sweet." Ronnie said. "I wish my Mom could find someone like that to make her happy."

"Isn't the reason Hel's here because her co-producer's mom broke her hip? What about him?" Alyssa asked. Isabella shook her head.

"I'd think he's too busy taking care of his mom to romance Ronnie's mom."

"I doubt he's going to take the time to meet up with my mom to even begin a romance. They didn't seem like they were really friends in high school when I saw him at the grocery store. And I'm more positive that my Mom isn't going to take time out to meet up with a guy who's only going to be here a month even if it is Tad."

Daphne laughed weekly. "Yeah, that's silly."

* * *

AN: Thank you all for your kind reviews. I know some of the flashbacks earlier never really show the group in the best light but honestly, are any of us the people we were in high school? I love writing Aggie. My headcanon is Aggie is the reason Tad is the way he is. They interact so well. :) Enjoy the chapter and please continue to review. I love your comments.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN:** Any errors regarding Japanese words are mine. I used Google to the best of my ability. If they are incorrect, please let me know and I will change them.

Ane: big sister

Imouto: little sister

* * *

 _Phoebe knew very well the many levels of Helga's anger. Not first-hand of course, Helga would hurt herself before she ever thought of physically or even verbally hurting Phoebe. But being her best friend since the age of three had given her a very good insight to Helga's many moods._

 _There was annoyed, angry, pissed, livid and finally furious. She rarely reached furious, in fact, Phoebe could count on one hand and still have fingers left over how many times she'd seen Helga on the verge of furious. When Helga was well and truly furious, her eyes flashed a deep blue; almost the color of the furthest depths of the ocean and Heaven help anyone who got in her way. The person she was furious at might as well just sign their will and be done with it if she got ahold of them._

 _As Helga stormed past her, Phoebe caught sight of that deep blue in her eyes. Excusing herself for the group, she hurriedly followed Helga into the nearest girl's bathroom where some poor Freshman was at the sink looking at Helga with something akin to true fear in her eyes._

" _You'd better leave," Phoebe advised. The girl picked up her bag and hurried out of the bathroom. Phoebe quickly checked under the stalls for extra feet before announcing it all clear and almost running to the door to flip the lock. Helga was about to erupt and there wasn't much time left._

 _The lock just clicked into place when there was a loud bang behind her. Phoebe whirled around to see the metal towel holder with a large dent in the middle of it and Helga shaking out her right hand._

" _What happened?" she asked. Her answer was Helga turning towards one of the bathroom stall doors and kicking it as hard as she could. The door flew open wildly, slamming hard against the rest of the stall and shaking it. She kicked it three more times, screaming each time. Phoebe leaned against the wall and waited until either she got all the anger out or the stall door finally broke._

 _Helga was breathing heavily, almost gasping for breath when she turned around and focused her anger on the row of sinks. Deciding that Bob Pataki would have kittens if the school asked he pay for sinks that Helga broke, she finally stepped forward._

" _No, don't break the sinks! Tell me what happened. Talk to me, ane."_

 _Helga clutched at one of the sinks, her tears falling suddenly from her eyes. Her body sagged and she crumpled onto the floor in front of the sink, sobbing. Phoebe was caught off guard because the times she'd seen Helga cry was even less than the times she'd seen Helga truly furious. Hurrying towards the dented towel holder, she pulled out a handful of paper towels and dropped to the floor next to Helga._

" _I have a katana at home. Who do I have to impale?"_

"… _ha…te ….her"_

" _Who? Ane, tell me who we hate and I'll take care of her."_

 _Helga sucked in deep breaths of air, trying to talk. Phoebe wrapped an arm around her and let her best friend sob violently on her shoulder._

" _It's okay, get it all out. We can plot demises after."_

" _C…class…"_

 _She rolled her eyes. "There are some things more important than class. Not many, but one or two."_

 _Her joke fell flat as Helga continued to sob brokenly, her hands covering her mouth so as not to let her voice carry too far out of the bathroom._

 _She had no idea how long they sat there before Helga's sobs finally slowed and quieted. But by that time, Phoebe was angry. She wasn't sure who she was angry at but whomever caused her best friend-her sister to break like this, there would be a reckoning._

 _She offered the towels to Helga again and she took them, pulling away from Phoebe as she wiped her face._

" _Now. What happened?" she asked again when Helga had finally calmed. The blonde took a deep shaky breath, her fingers clenched on the paper towels._

" _I thought I could handle it. They've been dating practically all summer and I've been fine."_

 _Arnold. She should've known. There was nobody else that could bring Helga from calm to an emotional wreck in one point six seconds._

" _I came out of first period today and I saw them. They were…"_

 _Her breath hitched again and Phoebe could almost see Helga's iron will forcing the tears back. Her fingers tightened on the towels almost ripping them apart._

" _They were kissing. Which again, shouldn't have made me that angry but I swear, I swear Phoebe, I saw Lila catch sight of me walking out of the classroom right before she pulled Arnold down."_

 _It was Phoebe's turn to be angry. In the three years Arnold had been gone she'd watched Helga go out of her way to be nice and friendly towards Lila as sort of a penance. Her conscience was in San Lorenzo at the time and she tried her best to prove to herself and everyone else that she was worthy of his trust. During that time, she'd also watched Lila morph from a sweet, helpful girl into a manipulative, scheming preteen, often using Helga in some of her plans. At least now she knew who she had to run through._

" _I feel horrible because Lila wouldn't do that, right? She couldn't have seen me coming, it had to have been a coincidence."_

 _Phoebe doubted it, but kept quiet._

" _But seeing them kiss, my heart died a little Phoebe." Tears leaked from her eyes but she angrily wiped them away. "Why am I not worthy of him? I did my best, I thought… why can't he ever look at me like that?"_

 _Phoebe checked back her anger. She and Gerald had spoken briefly about Arnold and Lila's sudden romance and Gerald couldn't figure it out. Phoebe had seen Arnold and Helga together and has sworn that the blonde-haired boy had more than friendly feelings for her best friend. Nothing about Arnold and Lila's relationship made sense._

 _Climbing to her feet, she held out a hand towards Helga._

" _Up."_

 _Helga looked up at her, her eyes bloodshot and her face blotched. She took Phoebe's hand and pulled herself up. Phoebe turned on the faucet._

" _Wash your face. Let's see if we can make it look as if you're just sick."_

 _She stood by with fresh paper towels as Helga washed her face. She pulled out a comb from her bag and some eye drops._

" _We can go to the nurse and tell her you're sick."_

" _No. I need to get back to class. We both do. I can make it the rest of the day."_

" _Okay then, come here." She put a couple of drops in Helga's eyes and combed out her tangled hair, pulling it out of its messy ponytail and rearranging it in a loose French braid. Then she pinched her cheeks. Helga leaned back and waved at her hands._

" _What'ya doing?"_

" _Trying to get some color back into your face. Look."_

 _She pointed towards the mirror and Helga looked at her reflection._

" _You're a miracle worker Phoebs,"_

" _I try."_

 _She took a deep breath and straightened her spine. And with that, Phoebe knew Helga was back._

" _I'm sorry you had to witness that, Phoebs,"_

" _What are best friends for?"_

 _Helga smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you imouto,"_

 _Phoebe smiled. "Ready to go?  
Helga nodded and they headed towards the door to the bathroom. _

" _Oh, and Phoebe?"_

 _Phoebe flipped the lock and opened the door to the bathroom before grinning at Helga._

" _Forgetting!"_

* * *

She left before he returned home. Her cab was turning down the block where Arnold's house was when her phone rang. She glanced at the caller id and clicked the button.

"Yes?"

"Are you on your way to Arnold's?" Tad asked.

"I told you I'd probably be gone this weekend." She reminded him. "You seemed okay with it."

"I am. I'm ecstatic over it. I just have one question."

She waited a beat to see if he was going to tell her or wait her out. He chose waiting her out.

"Yes?"

"Where's your laptop?"

Damn. Busted.

"With me," She winced waiting for his comment. He was silent for a moment.

"I understand you haven't dated much in the past Hel, so let me remind you how this works. You're going to the love of your life's house for a weekend of fun sexy time. You are not supposed to be working during fun sexy time."

"Perhaps you've forgotten there is also a seventeen-year-old girl living in that house who may be okay with me staying the weekend but would probably not be okay with me making her father spend the entire weekend in bed."

"I doubt you're making Arnold do anything."

"Not the point. The point is I will be dressed and in either the living room or the kitchen for portions of this weekend. I will probably need something to do and I don't want to interrupt their usual routine. Plus, you never know when inspiration will strike."

"What inspiration? We aren't doing anything…wait. Are you already writing up show ideas for Urban Legend?"

"Maybe?"

"Dammit Hel. Send those to me sometime this weekend. I'm getting bored sitting at my parent's house."

She grinned. "You got it."

The cab slowed on the street and pulled up to the curb across the street. She paid the driver, grabbed her small duffle and climbed out of the cab, frowning at the large number of cars on the street around the house.

"Have you called her yet?"

"Don't rush me woman. I'm still debating on if I want to call or just wait her out."

"Tad, you have never waited a woman out. You're the "go-getter" type."

"Well I might change my tactics this time."

"Thaddeus. You aren't…scared, are you?"

She smiled at his sputtering and eventual scoffing. "Me? Scared? Of what? I am hurt, nay insulted, that you think I'm scared of calling anyone."

"Funny I'm starting to get a craving for hot potatoes."

"You think you're funny because you're too far away for me to come after."

"You know I can take you." She climbed the steps to the front porch and knocked on the door.

"You know what, I'm not going to miss you this weekend." He insisted, causing her to laugh. "You go have your fun sexy time and I'll see you when you get back. And send me that stuff!"

She was still snickering when the door opened. Arnold smiled at her as he stepped aside to let her in.

"I'd like to think that look is for me but I know better." He teased, as he closed the door. He took the bag from her hands and pulled her to him for a kiss.

"I'm going to be nauseous. And then I'm not going to be able to eat pork steak and then I'm going to be upset."

Helga broke the kiss and looked up at Arnold. "Okay, either Gerald is here or I'm hearing his voice in my head. Which is not good if I'm hearing his voice when I'm kissing you."

"You wish you were dating me Pataki."

She turned around to see Gerald leaning against the entryway to the living room, a bottle in his hand.

"No…no I really don't." she retorted. Arnold let her leave his arms but still held on to her hand.

"Yeah. Um, I hope you don't mind, but Gerald rarely gets nights off so we're having an impromptu bar-b-que tonight."

She looked back at Arnold. "We?"

He grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, the girls, Gerald, Patty and Harold are here. Rhonda has to work in the city overnight and Timberly and Devon are having a date night." He let go of her hand. "I'm just going to put this upstairs. Gerald, get her a drink, will ya?"

"I'm sure she's been here enough to know where the drinks are!" Gerald yelled up at his friend as Arnold ran up the stairs with her bag. She walked towards the living room and gave Gerald a hug.

"How are you doing?" He asked, returning her hug.

"So far, pretty good. Although this…" She took a deep breath. "I'm a bit apprehensive."

"It'll be fine." He opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle. "So, how are you and…" He gestured towards the ceiling with the bottle before handing it to her.

She took it smiling. "I think we're doing okay. He's not sick of me yet."

"That reminds me, I have a message for you."

She twisted off the cap and gave him an odd look. "Okay?"

"Remember the last time we talked?"

"Yeah."

"Well…I was told to give you a message. It was, let me see if I can get this right, tell her _It's about damn time, ane._."

Helga stared at him, the bottle slipping from her suddenly nerveless fingers. It smashed to the floor breaking into pieces and spilling liquid in a puddle.

"Jeez, Helga, what the…"

She suddenly burst into tears, her legs giving out. She slid onto the floor as Gerald put his bottle down and dropped to his knees beside her.

"Oh crap Helga, I didn't know it was going to make you turn on the waterworks. Stop, Arnold's going to come back down here and yell at me for making you cry."

Her choked sobs turned into laughter as she snagged the sleeve of his shirt. He squawked.

"Not my good shirt! Dammit Pataki!"

She laughed, dropping her head into her hands.

"Sorry. Sorry." Her voice was muffled by her hands. "Can you…"

"Yeah, hold on." He reached up and pulled a couple of sheets of paper towels from the roll and handed them to her.

"You weren't supposed to start crying. I swear if you get me double teamed yelled at I'm gonna get your number from Arnold just to yell at you."

"Sorry." She repeated, wiping her face. She sniffed and blew her nose before looking up at him, her eyes still red. "I wasn't expecting…when you said you had a message…I just…" She took a deep breath and let it out in a huff. "Okay, I'm okay."

"What is going on? Are you okay?"

Gerald raised his hands, slowly climbing from his kneeling position on the floor. "It's not my fault, man!"

"It's mine. I got some…unexpected news I wasn't expecting. And I kind of dropped a bottle."

He held out his hand to help her off the floor. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine football head. Now, where's the broom. I made the mess, least I can do is clean it up."

"Not it!" Gerald announced turning towards the back door and the porch. "You can get your own messages from now on Pataki."

Helga snorted as she pulled more towels from the roll. Arnold pulled the broom from the kitchen closet and swept up what he could of the glass. Helga wiped up the rest, making sure she got all the tiny pieces.

"Sorry, guess I'm clumsy."

Arnold walked to the fridge and pulled out two bottles, handing her one as he shut the door.

"As long as you're okay."

She smiled as his hand touched her face, his thumb brushing against her cheek.  
"I am."

He leaned towards her.

The screen door slammed shut as Daphne ran in.

"Hey Dad, Harold said to…am I gonna have to walk around this house all weekend in blinders?"

Arnold grinned at his daughter. "Possibly. Or you just get used to it."

He dropped a kiss on Helga's lips before letting her go and picking up the platter of pork chops and hamburgers from the counter. To prove a point, he dropped a kiss on Daphne's head before opening the screen door with his hip and walking out onto the back porch to the back yard.

Helga stood in the kitchen nervously peeling the label of her bottle. Daphne looked at her.

"You okay?"

"Look Daphne. I don't want to come between you and your Dad. I know this isn't what you expected at all when you won that trip over a year ago and if this is going to make you uncomfortable…"

"Whoa, Hel, stop." She crossed the kitchen and took Helga's hand. "I may not know everything that happened between you and my Dad when you were my age, but I know enough. I also know that you make him really happy. And yeah, I'm gonna crack jokes because no matter how happy I am that my Dad is happy, I'm still his daughter and it's always going to be weird seeing him kiss anybody. It's always weird when I catch my Mom making out with her latest guy too. They're my parents, nobody wants to see their parents as having a…" she waved her hand. "You know…being human. So just promise you'll keep the screaming down to a minimum and you won't walk into the kitchen wearing nothing but underwear and my dad's tee shirt while I'm in the house and we're cool."

Helga chucked nervously. "I think I can definitely promise you that."

"Awesome. Now, come on. You haven't eaten until you've had Izzy's dad's cooking. Ronnie swears by his stuff."

Tugging lightly, she pulled Helga through the kitchen and out the back door.

The back yard was full of laughter and music. Harold was standing at the grill, spatula in hand talking to Gerald. Isabella, Alyssa and Ronnie were all gathered around Patty talking about something and Arnold was heading back towards the back porch when they walked out.

"I was wondering where you two went to."

* * *

By the makeshift picnic table, Patty looked up from the girl's conversation to see an older version of a flashback walking down the back-porch steps with Daphne. She stood up, her eyes widened in shock.

"Helga?"

Across the yard, the blonde woman looked up and flashed a happy grin. At the grill, Harold looked up from his conversation with Gerald to see who his wife was calling out.

"Sonva…"

Patty had cleared the table and was hurrying towards the blonde.

"Holy crap, Helga!"

Helga laughed as Patty reached them and grabbed her in a hug. Helga hugged the woman back.

Back at the table, the three girls looked at each other.

"Wait. My mom knows Hel?' Isabella asked. Alyssa looked at everyone.

"Does my mom know Hel? Does your mom know Hel?" she asked pointing at Ronnie. The dark-haired teen shrugged. Gerald looked at the three girls.

"I'll spare you the confusion, yes. Your moms know Helga. And so does your dad Izzy."

Patty had released Helga from the hug but was holding onto her shoulders.

"You look great. I never thought you'd come back here. Is Tad with you?"

Helga laughed again. "Thanks. And yes, Tad's here. His mom had an accident and he came to nurse her back to health, or until she could walk again. I came with him."

Patty looked between her and Arnold who was standing a little off to the side of her. "When did you two run into each other?"

Arnold rubbed a hand on the back of his neck. "Funny story…"

"You remember when I won that trip to LA last year?" Daphne jumped in, thrilled to be part of this story. "Hel and Tad are the executive producers of the show we all watch."

Patty looked back at Helga. "You and Tad wrote Ever After? Well, now I might have to sit down and watch it."

Helga flashed her a look. "No, Patty, you really don't." Her attention was caught by someone walking towards them and she glanced over. Harold stood there still holding his spatula and looking her over. She gave him a look.

"Hello pink boy."

"Madame Fortress Mommy."

She grinned and moved to give him a hug.

"Welcome back."

"Thanks. So, I hear you're the man to go to if someone is looking for a choice cut of meat."

" You heard correctly."

"You're going to have to prove that Berman. I've heard your big talk before."

"Step this way Pataki, and I'll show you things that will make you sing my praises."

Helga followed him, waving to Ronnie as she passed. Daphne headed towards her friends. Patty looked at Arnold.

"So…what's going on? You met her in LA?"

"About that too…yes, I met up with Tad and Helga in LA. And…we started dating before I left. We've been dating long distance for over a year now."

She blinked.

"Well damn, Arnold. And you felt you couldn't tell me this?"

"Honestly, I didn't tell anyone except Gerald. Not that I didn't trust you and Herald, but I tried to keep it as under wraps as possible."

"Lila doesn't know, does she?"

"Nope. And honestly, I'm perfectly fine with her never knowing if I had my way. I know it's probably not going to happen, but I just don't want to deal with the drama that will inevitably follow if Lila finds out Helga and I are dating. She pulled some really ridiculous crap in LA up to and including telling Helga that we were reconciling and to quit throwing herself at me."

"Wait. Is this why you sent the cryptic messages asking about high school to me last year?'

"Yeah."

"Well damn Arnold. I will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about your lovely ex-wife. God knows I was never able to do it when we were in high school."

* * *

Tad was composing an email to Del regarding Anne and her contract and how the director of her movie was responding when his cell began playing Beethoven's fifth. He picked up the phone and read the text.

 **Change of plans for beginning of weekend. Seems there's an impromptu bbq happening. The girls are here as well as Gerald, Harold and Patty.**

Tad smiled. Patty had been a good friend of Helga's during high school and while Gerald had known of their plans to leave right after graduation, Helga had made sure she'd written Patty a letter outlining why she was leaving. He typed out a response.

 **Sounds like fun.**

His phone dinged again.

 **Patty wants to know where you are. Do I make up something or tell her you're on your way?**

 **Um…no. As much as it would be nice to see Patty again, I am not showing up at your boyfriend's house. That would be awkward.**

 **Chicken. It seems the princess is staying overnight in the city for work. So it's safe.**

 **Hel, eat bbq, send my regrets, and have fun sexy time tonight. Quit worrying about me.**

 **Someone has to.**

He tossed his phone on the couch next to him and finished typing up the email to Del.

After closing out of the computer, he sat back for a minute. The house was silent. Which was something he was used to; there were times when he and Hel would be in the same house for hours on end not saying a word. Picking back up his phone, he dialed a number.

The phone rang twice and a female voice answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"How's the movie going?"

"Miserable. Since the jerk got called out by the lawyers, he's going out of his way to nitpick every line I saw and trying to make me wear the most ridiculous revealing costumes. My character is going to law school, I doubt she's going to be wearing booty shorts and a bikini top in October. It's just pointless Tad."

"I just sent an email to Del to find out what else she can help you with, so call her in a day or two."

"I want to quit. Which annoys me because I've never quit anything. But I am not going to play his bimbo because he has a hang up about checking out my boobs."

"I know monster; we'll figure something out."

"In other news, I hear you're in your hometown." Anne said, the grin obvious in her voice.

"In other news, I hear you and Allen are still talking to Ronnie," he retorted.

"Where else are we going to get our good gossip?"

"I really hope that's not what you're using her for."

"Tad. It's us. You know Allen and I. We are not going to do that. We genuinely like Ronnie. She's great and we'd be hanging out all the time if she wasn't across the country."

"Well, between you, me and Allen because I know you'll end up telling him, Ronnie's mother says she's been much more outgoing and engaging since she started talking to you two. So, look at that, you two aren't complete pains in the butt all the time after all."

Anne laughed. "Allen and I can be good when we want to be. But where's the fun in that? You know Ronnie's mom?" her voice sounded calculating. "Just how well do you know Ronnie's mom?"

"Well enough that she was comfortable enough to tell me about your friendship with her daughter. Quit fishing for information."

"You're no fun anymore."

"I'm plenty of fun. Don't forget to call Del before you do anything calculating."

"Promise. Thank you Tad."

"Sure monster. Talk to you later."

Disconnecting his call, he put his phone next to him and opened a word program. After gathering his thoughts, he began typing out ideas for a season of the horror anthology they were slated to do.

* * *

"Criminy these are amazing!" Helga gushed as she licked sauce from her fingers. "When did you get so talented?"

"When I was working under Mr. Green, he gave me some tips on rubs and sauces. The rest I've just toyed with on my own." He looked down the table at Ronnie who was finishing her ribs. "Well?"

The raven-haired teen took one last bite. "This might the be best rub for ribs you've made to date Mr. Berman."

"Ronnie is my harshest critic." He explained. "If she doesn't like it, it goes back to the drawing board.'

"Has she turned down any of your creations?" Helga asked. Harold nodded.

"There's been a couple that didn't pass."

"Plus a couple more that she suggested for other meats." Patty reminded him.

"Ronnie's our resident food critic." Isabella explained. "We keep telling her she could do it professional."

"Can't stand scallops. Or brussel sprouts." Ronnie said, taking another bite of her ribs. "Can't be a food critic if you can't eat all the food."

"Never let supposed limitations stop you from what you really want to do." Helga told her. The four adults looked at her. She glanced around the table nervously. "What?"

Patty rested her chin onto an upturned hand and gave Helga a questioning look. "Where was that self-motivation years ago?"

"Trapped underneath mountains of self-doubt and depression." She answered. Arnold wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her temple. On the other side of Patty, Harold snickered.

"Ha ha, Helga loves Arnold." He teased. Helga narrowed her eyes.

"I can still pound you, you big donut hole." She retorted, half joking. Harold laughed.

"I'd like to see you try Hel-ga."

Patty poked her husband in the shoulder and Gerald rolled his eyes.

"It's like we're ten all over again." Gerald said.

"What is it with you two?" Patty asked. "Even in high school, you two thrived on how many insults you could throw at each other."

"It's our friendship." Harold said. "We're weird like that. Hey, you remember that time we got left behind on a field trip and ended up at WrestleMania?

Helga laughed. "You mean the time I had to go back and get you from the candy room and we got left behind?"

"And we got chased by clowns and took the wrong subway and ended up in the river?"

The four girls stopped talking. "You got left behind in a candy shop and got chased by clowns?" Isabella asked.

Helga chucked a thumb at Harold. "Someone convinced me it would be a good idea to take a two-seater bike from the circus to get back to the city. The clowns saw us and gave chase."

"We got into WrestleMania, didn't we?"

Helga grinned. "That we did. And it was great,"

"Didn't your parents freak out?" Alyssa asked. Gerald shook his head.

"I think Mr. Simmons was more freaked out than anything."

"Mr. Simmons." Helga sighed. "That man was a gift to a class of ten-year-old kids. Is he still around?"

"He moved to Florida a couple of years ago," Arnold said. "He's retired, but the last I heard from him he's volunteering at a library working with children who don't have the best home life."

"Speaking of stories, Uncle Gerald…" Alyssa said. Patty shook her head.

"Here we go."

"We hear you know all the good stories in this town. We always thought Hillwood was boring."

Gerald leaned back to look down the long table at his niece. "Who you been talking to?"

Patty raised her hand. "That would be me. Sorry."

Helga grinned. "The great Keeper of the Tales, Gerald Johannson. Never imitated, never duplicated."

"Except that one time." Harold reminded her. Her grin grew.

"When Tad got so mad because he actually knew one of the legends and nobody would let him tell it?"

"And you got mad because we wouldn't let you tag along that night?" Gerald reminded her.

"Oh, I got my revenge."

"Yeah, so did Tad."

Helga chuckled. "This is why we work so well together. Great minds and all that."

"What story?" Alyssa asked. The teens had all stopped eating and were now looking expectantly at the adults. Patty looked at Gerald and shrugged.

"I told them they would have to ask you if they wanted the full stories."

Gerald looked at Arnold and Harold before shrugging and standing up. "Do not tell your mother about this. She'll kill me if she found out I was filling your head with urban legends. I need an entrance."

"Which one are you doing?" Harold asked.

"Figured I'd tell the one we're already talking about."

"I got this." Arnold stood up and cleared his throat. "For decades, the legend of the ghost bride has terrified kids all over this city. There's only one place to find her, one way to search for her and one person who can tell the story. I give you, the Keeper of the Tales, Gerald Johannson."

Gerald cleared his throat and began the tale.

Helga watched at four seventeen-year-old girls became wrapped up in Gerald's telling of the death and haunting of Cynthia Snell, the ghost bride. Their wide eyes and stillness as Lyss' Uncle wove a tale of betrayal, murder and madness. This was what she wanted for their season of Urban Legends. A story within a story that would weave a spell around the viewers, a story that would enrapture and terrify the audience all while making them believe that the characters on the screen could be anyone in their own hometown. Another perfect mixture of legend and reality merged in such a way that the people watching wouldn't truly know what was real and what wasn't.

Gerald finished his tale and took a little bow. The adults clapped and like that the spell was broken.

"That's…that's in this town?" Alyssa asked, flabbergasted.

"Yep." Gerald said. "In the old part of Hillwood Cemetery. We found the grave ourselves."

"And then got the crap scared out of us and chased into a mausoleum." Harold added, glaring at Helga. She just grinned back at him.

"Should've let me come along in the first place."

"It was a boys only trip." He insisted. "No girls allowed."

"Well, that's pretty sexist." Isabella said. Helga snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Please, I was more boy than any of you guys ever were."

"Funny, because I remember you always wearing a pink dress and a matching bow." Harold shot back.

"And I could still outpitch you, outrun you, out climb you and outfight you. So what does that say about you guys?"

"We can pee standing up."

"How is that even a check in the plus column?"

"It just is."

"Do you have any more stories, Uncle Gerald?" Alyssa asked, desperate to get back on the track of her Uncle spilling all the good stories he knew.

Daphne rested her head on her hand. "Did this happen a lot?"

"All the time." Patty and Arnold said at the same time.

* * *

"You sure you don't want us to take the girls home?" Patty asked. She'd followed Arnold into the kitchen on the pretense of helping him bring some of the bowls and plates into the house. The bar-b-que was wrapping up, Harold and Gerald laughing in the backyard while Helga listened. Arnold put the empty bowls in the sink.

"You'd have a riot on your hands if you tried. It's my weekend, why break tradition now?"

"Because," she nodded towards the back yard. "I'm sure you want to have some alone time with her."

Arnold grinned, taking the plates from her. "Trust me, there will be alone time had. Nothing in my life is going to suddenly change because Helga and I are together. I don't have any plans to change what I usually do while she's here and I don't think she'd be comfortable if I tried anyway. This is my life and she understands that. Besides, Daphne has to get used to her and she has to get used to Daphne. A plan that, so far, seems to be working out great."

"Daphne is one thing. Having Lyss, Ronnie and Isabella here is quite another."

Another grin. "And Gerald tonight. I have a full house."

"Arnold!"

"We have the whole weekend together. Gerald has a mid-shift tomorrow and I'm sure the girls will take off somewhere tomorrow afternoon so Helga and I will have plenty of alone time."

"If you're sure."

The back door opened and Daphne walked in carrying empty cups.

"What are you two gossiping about in here?"

"Nothing. What's going on out there?"

"Lyss is lamenting the thwarted opportunity of getting more stories from Gerald." She said as she put the cups in the sink. "The new plan is to annoy him until he gives up the rest of the stories. Just not today because every time he starts one Mr. Berman and Hel start going off on tangents and the story never gets told."

Arnold chuckled. "That's because I think either Helga or Harold or both have a story for every urban legend we followed up on."

"You guys did some dangerous stuff when you were younger,"

Arnold and Patty shared a knowing look. "That we did Kimba, that we did."

The door opened again and Ronnie stuck her head in. "Daphne! You gotta come out here! Hel's telling a story involving Tad and kick balls!"

Daphne snickered and hurried out the door. Patty looked back at Arnold.

"Maybe it's a good thing Tad couldn't make it."

"Oh trust me, I'm sure if he were here, he'd have a ton of stories to retaliate with."


	9. Chapter 9

" _Where were you?"_

 _The question came from the desk behind him. Normal people would turn around in their desk to address the person talking. Tad leaned back until his head was resting on the desk table behind him._

" _Pardon?"_

 _Rhonda looked down at his upside down gaze nonplussed. "My party on Friday. You weren't there."_

" _Was too. Just left early."_

 _What's early? I didn't see you at all."_

 _A smile slid across his face, which, upside down, was slightly disconcerting._

" _Were you looking for me my goddess-ack."_

 _He straightened up, rubbing his neck. "That hurts, how do people do that?"_

" _Normal people don't."_

 _He turned in his desk and gave her a smile. "That's why you love me."_

" _So where were you?" She ignored his retort._

" _Okay, so I got there a little after eight and left around ten thirty."_

" _Seriously? That's only like two and a half hours. Are my parties getting too boring for you?"_

" _Not at all. I had to leave, however you had Nadine and Tessa with you and if there's anything I know about Tessa, she wasn't leaving you the rest of the party."_

 _Rhonda mock pouted. "I didn't see you."_

 _He grinned again. "See, that's because I'm a ninja. You aren't supposed to see your ninja. But always trust that I've got your back."_

 _He turned back in his seat as the teacher hurried into the class._

* * *

Rhonda loved her job. It was something she was good at and it afforded her the luxury of keeping relatively normal hours except during fashion week in the spring and the changeovers each season. She was currently working through the winter and next spring's fashion buying trips which kept her busy. Which she also loved. If she was busy, her mind was occupied enough that it didn't wander off into what she had now deemed as forbidden territory. Namely Tad and the fact that he'd been in town for almost two weeks. Which meant he was only here for two weeks more before his mother was fine and he and Helga returned to Los Angeles and out of Hillwood for who knew how long. Fourteen more days until he was out of her life. Fourteen more days until she never saw him again.

Estimated.

She shook her head, trying to expel it from her mind. The problem was that she wasn't at work. She was at an unfamiliar coffee shop, getting a much needed caffeine boost after a designer meeting that took her to the other side of town. The meeting, which had been way too early in the morning for her taste, had been stressful enough. So much that she needed the coffee before she headed to said job and the high intensity movement of the office. It also meant that right now, her mind had more than enough time to wander.

"Some of us are on a time table. If you could speed it up in front." A familiar voice behind her snapped impatiently and she gritted her teeth. The one thing she didn't like about her job was the fact that sometimes she was forced to deal with Lila Sawyer-Shortman on a somewhat consistent basis. The fact that the red-headed menace was currently behind her instead of wreaking havoc on the men in her office meant today was going to be one of those days.

A woman one person in front of her turned slightly and poked her body half out of the line to look at the redhead behind her. Rhonda reeled back on her heels as she recognized the light skinned blonde woman.

"They say that too much caffeine leads to wrinkles. I know of an amazing herbal infused tea shop down the block should you choose to try another alternative to the incredible amount of makeup you've chosen instead in a poor attempt to mask your age."

She couldn't help it, she choked out a laugh. She could almost hear the sneer in Lila's voice as she retaliated.

"Make sure you get a low fat muffin with your coffee, Nadine. You're looking a little chunky."

"Considering the extra roll of flesh I'm spotting underneath that incredibly small jacket you're wearing Lila, I think I'm looking better than you. I didn't even know they made business suits in toddler."

Several other people in the line chuckled, apparently used to this battle of words. A person in front of her, Nadine raised a hand in dismissive gesture. "Instead of complaining like you do every week, perhaps you can just quietly stand in line for your caffeine? Oh look," she added as one person gave their drink order and stepped out of the order line. "You're one step closer."

"How about you mind your own business, Wilkinson?"

"How about you quit being an annoyance to everyone in this line, Sawyer?"

"I don't have to take this abuse from you."

The woman behind Nadine and in front of Rhonda finally turned around. "No, you don't." she said to Lila. "You can leave and take your business elsewhere. I'm sure Jackie won't miss you."

She heard Lila behind her muttering about second rate coffee shops, her voice growing faint as she stormed out of the shop and breathed a sigh of relief that she would not have to deal with her until the caffeine kicked in.

The woman in front of her said something she didn't catch and as Nadine looked at her to answer, her eyes caught Rhonda's. There was a moment of surprise and wariness in them before she smiled.

"Rhonda?"

Rhonda smiled hesitantly and waved. "Hi."

Nadine stepped to the side, letting the woman between them move in front of her.

"Hi! When did you move to New York? Or are you just visiting?"

"No, not visiting. I work in town. Over in the fashion district."

"That's nice. Last time I heard you were moving to Paris."

"That fell through. I actually live in Hillwood now."

"Really? I figured you'd never go back to the hometown."

"So," She was desperate to change the subject. "You work in town too?"

"I'm a biological researcher at CUNY."

"I'm sorry?"

"CUNY. It's a research facility over by Queens. I deal with entomological environmental effects on biological artifacts."

Rhonda blinked in confusion. "That sounds…confusing."

"Quite the opposite, I find it really exciting."

"Nadine!" the woman at the counter called out. "Your latte is ready."

"Oh hold on." She turned back to the woman at the counter and greeted her with a friendly smile. The woman handed her a cup and waved off her money. Nadine smiled again and stepped out of line, leaving the counter open for Rhonda.

"I just need the largest Columbian blend you have."

"Anything in it?"

"No thank you, just black."

She paid the woman and stepped to the side, surprised to see Nadine still standing there.

"No more half café, skinny latte with light foam?"

Rhonda grimaced. "Anymore, I'm just happy if my coffee comes strong enough to get me through the day."

"Constant partying and lack of sleep will do that to you." She looked at her phone and smiled distractedly. "Sorry, I have to get to work. It was great catching up with you Rhonda. See you around."

She watched Nadine hurry out of the coffee shop, answering a call as she hurried down the street. For the first time in her life she felt a sense of loss. She'd been too caught up with her life in high school to do more than distribute the vague sense of sadness at the losses and misfortunes that happened and had only felt a profound sense of relief regarding her divorce. But watching Nadine walk away after a superficial platitude of polite conversation left her feeling raw.

She took her coffee in hand and walked out of the shop and stopped on the sidewalk. She turned away from the path that led towards her office and instead walked back towards the train station, her phone in her hand.

* * *

The door opened and Helga looked quizzically at the dark haired woman standing on her front porch.

"To be honest, you were the last person I expected to hear from."

She opened the door wider and tilted her head in the direction of the inside of the house. Rhonda stepped into the house, looking around at the huge foyer.

"To be honest, I wasn't sure you weren't just going to hang up on me. Arnold gave me your number."

"Figured as much. Damn football head can't not help people out."

Rhonda chuckled as she followed Helga through the foyer and into the huge living room. "We're all late thirties early fourties. Really? You're still calling him that?"

"It's true. And anymore it's more of a pet name." The blond moved her laptop from the chair to the side table and sat down. "So, spill princess. Why are you calling me? It's not like we were friends in high school."

Rhonda slid her purse onto the floor and sat down on the couch across from the chair. "I'm not really sure, honestly. As I was walking back to the train station, I immediately thought of calling you. I can't talk to Arnold about this and it's not like I can talk to Tad…"

"Why not?"

The question stopped Rhonda. She gave Helga a look. "Why not what?"

"Why can't you talk to Tad about this? I have a horrible suspicion that this is related to the past and as we all know; I don't do well with things that happened in the past. Which begs the question. Two questions actually. One; why are you talking to Arnold about mindless gossip and two; why can't you talk to Tad about the same mindless gossip. Especially since I know you used to share it with him way back when."

"As I told Arnold, since he's dating the best friend of my current problem, he is by proxy my confidant. Second, I've seen Tad a grand total of twice since you two have returned to Hillwood. It's not as if I can just call him up and start talking about what happened on my way to work today."

"Twice? That's it?" She seemed surprised by the admission. "That sneaky little jerk was trying to keep me so occupied that I wouldn't…okay,"

She sighed and leaned back into the chair. "Okay, I'm not promising anything because I am not the world's most sympathetic person, but knock yourself out. Let's try this."

"Really?" She expected more of a fight. When she'd called Arnold to get Helga's number even he had been wary.

" _Are you sure this is really what you want to do? You know you can talk to me. As much as I love her, Helga is not the most sympathetic person on the planet. Especially to people who aren't in her personal bubble."_

"Our Senior Year, Nadine's…incident." She began. "You were the one who found her in the bathroom."

Helga was immediately wary. "Yeah?"

"That year, I was not…the best friend I should have been. I didn't know about the entire business with Nadine and Brian until Nadine was sent to the retreat."

"I'm really trying to be sympathetic towards you but why are you bringing this up now?"

"I saw Nadine today. In a coffee shop in Manhattan by the fabric district. Lila was there also,"

Helga's lip curled in disgust.

"They exchanged words and Nadine got some damn good barbs in. Enough that Lila left in a huff. Enough to know that this is a fairly common thing."

"Okay, stop." Helga held up a hand. "I can tell you right now I am going to be exactly zero help to you in any of this. When I left, I left. This is the first time I've been to Hillwood since the day after high school graduation. Outside Tad and an occasional call or text to Gerald, until a year and a half ago I have had exactly zero interaction with anyone in this town. So other than the very bare bones first-hand information I know regarding Nadine's accident in the bathroom, I have no idea what has happened in this town since graduation. Tad is the one who's returned here a couple of times after we left, he's the one who kept up with one or two people in this town. He's the one who has way more information than I do. Therefore, he is really the person you should be talking to about any of this."

"How? As far as I know, he's talking care of his mother until she gets better."

A slow grin slid across Helga's face. "I have a plan."

* * *

The TV was on, playing one of his mother's favorite rom coms. Tad was sitting in one of the living room chairs working on his tablet when the knock came on the door. He looked up at his mother who had paused the movie.

"Did you bribe the grocery boy to bring you fig newtons?"

She shook her head. "I have no idea who that is, dear. Wait…they'll deliver me cookies? Why didn't you tell me that before?"

Putting his tablet aside and ignoring his mother's plaintive demand for answers, he stood up and crossed the apartment to the front door.

Helga stood in the entryway holding a box of fig newtons. He glared at her.

"Did my mother call you?" he accused. Helga pushed him out of the way.

"Shut up. They're for a bribe. Hi Aggie!" she called out towards the living room. "I've brought fig newtons!"

"Helga, you were always my favorite." His mother's delighted voice came back. Tad rolled his eyes.

"Other than to ruin any progress I've made with the addict in there, why are you here?" he asked, as she breezed past him.

"I'm here to watch your Mom while you go have coffee." Helga answered waving back towards the doorway as she walked into the living room.

"Gimme!" He could hear his Mother demanding in the living room as he turned back to the still open door. Rhonda stood in the doorway dressed in a fashionable flowing dress with matching boots. She gave him a hesitant smile and waved.

"Hi."

Tad half waved back.

"Hel!"

"Are there any meds she needs to take in the next couple of hours?" Helga asked as she walked back towards the doorway.

"What?"

"The princess needs to talk and after twenty minutes of trying…"

"She really did." Rhonda agreed. "It was almost admirable."

"We realized I am not the person she needs to talk to. So I made her drive me over here to keep an eye on your mom while you two go get coffee, lunch, ice cream whatever. Take your time, Aggie has cookies, we'll be fine."

She grinned at his narrowed gaze. "Payback is a huge bitch Gumblethorpe. Have fun. Rhonda, always a pleasure."

Rhonda smiled. "We'll have to get coffee before you leave so I can tell you all the good secrets Arnold won't tell you."

"I'll take that date." She pushed Tad's shoulder towards the door. "Meds?"

"Um…on the counter. Just if there's any pain."

"Great. Have fun."

She pushed him out of the apartment and shut the door behind him. Tad stared at the closed for a moment before turning back to Rhonda.

"It seems we have a lunch date."

Rhonda grinned. "Great. I'll drive."

* * *

Aggie was happily munching on fig newtons when Helga came back into the living room, taking over the chair Tad had been sitting in.

"Not that I don't love you dear, but what the hell was all of that about?"

"Don't question it Aggie, I'm trying to get you grandchildren."

"With tough love?"

"If it works? But also because payback. He kicked my butt into gear, it's only fair I do the same." She looked at the TV. "Is this The Summer Cabin?"

Aggie nodded. Helga smiled, getting comfortable.

"Between you and me, I always loved this movie."

"Helga? Is Tad okay? I mean is he doing okay?"

Helga looked at her.

"I know that you two are out there, rich and successful, doing what you love and I'm proud of both of you. But…he doesn't seem happy. Even when he visited the couple of times before, he's never really seemed happy."

"Your fall really scared him Aggie." Helga confessed. "Until this trip, I think he's always seen you and Ken as unfillable, immortal. Most kids see their parents as unaging. So when he saw you in the hospital, it really shook him up. No offense Aggie, but you're not as young as you used to be. I mean, I love you and Ken; you two were always incredibly kind to me. I probably love you more than I love my own parents. But I'm not your kid, which means I can tell you that Tad is worried about you. And as much as he bickers about the damn fig newtons, deep down, he's still your little boy who Mom just got hurt…bad. And he's trying to deal with it in his own way. As for him not seeming happy before this trip," she grinned. "Hopefully that can be remedied this trip."

* * *

 **Allen: Shhh. Don't tell anyone, Anne and I are running away. You know, in case anyone asks.**

 **Ronnie: *snort* Who's going to ask me?**

 **Allen: People might. You never know.**

 **Ronnie: Half the people around here think that you guys are a figment of my imagination.**

 **Allen: Um…did they miss the part where you were on a hit TV show and came to Cali for almost a week?**

 **Ronnie: Oh, they know that part. Anything after that is apparently a delusion of my overwrought fangirl mind.**

 **Allen: Are you still fangirling over me, you saucy wench? ;)**

 **Ronnie: I know you too well to fangirl over you now. Where are you two running away to?**

 **Allen: That is all Anne's elaborate plan. I'm just along for the ride. But knowing Anne, it'll be someplace with a beach and drinks.**

 **Ronnie: That sounds way better than here! Fall is kicking in here and Homecoming is in two weeks so everyone is in big dress and limo mode. Give me the beach and fruity drinks any day!**

 **Allen: You never know gumdrop. Maybe we'll stop by and pick you up before we escape for the beach.**

 **Ronnie: Lol! I'm sad to say that there is statistically better chance of me going to Homecoming with my cat than there is of you and Anne kidnapping me to a beach.**


	10. Chapter 10

I forgot to put a warning in the beginning of this story, so I'm doing it now: here there be monsters.

Going forward, this story will be dealing with some adult content and situations. There will be sexual situations and an upcoming chapter deals with a anxiety attack. I will post trigger warnings on that particular chapter but I do want to let you know it's coming.

There will also be an author's note at the end of this chapter.

* * *

 _He found her stumbling out of the kitchen, looking into the empty red solo cup she held as if she were confused by the contents…or lack thereof. She almost ran into the railing when he reached out a hand to snag her shoulder._

" _Slow down sweetheart, you're going to take a dive you won't like if you don't pay attention to where you're going."_

 _She looked up at him, the confused expression on her face changing into a surprised smile._

" _Where have you been?"_

" _Sitting outside watching the last of the drunken idiots trying to pole vault across the pool using the pool skimmer. It was both entertaining and very sad."_

 _He waved to a couple of stragglers sitting on the floor of the living room, half asleep and half-drunk as he maneuvered her towards the stairs. Rhonda waved wildly towards the stairs and Tad ducked his head to avoid getting hit with an empty solo cup._

" _Take me to bed!"_

 _He plucked the solo cup from her fingers and dropped it onto a small table that held at least a half a dozen similar cups._

" _Come on goddess, I think you've had too much to drink."_

 _He wrapped an arm around her waist and helped her up the main staircase, taking one step at a time and making sure she didn't fall back down the stairs. It was slow going but eventually they made it to the second floor. He maneuvered her towards her room, walking down the hallways slowly. She leaned heavily against him, her head half on his shoulder as she weaved through the hallway._

 _They reached the door to her bedroom and he took one hand from her arm to open her door and gently push her through. She let go of him to stumble into the room as he shut the door behind them. His plan was to first take care of her and then try to either round up the remainder of the party goers and either kick them out or get them situated so they passed out in a relatively safe environment. The mess in the house he wasn't worried about, the Lloyd's household staff were more than used to Rhonda's impromptu parties and would have the house clean before Rhonda even woke up that morning._

" _Okay you, let's get you dressed and into…"_

 _Rhonda stood in front of him, clad only in a red lace bra and a matching red lace thong. Tad, after almost swallowing his tongue, kept his eyes firmly about neck level._

 _She fisted her hands on her hips and glared at him, weaving slightly._

" _What is wrong with you?"_

 _He pulled a robe off the hook on the back of her door, carefully keeping his eyes off of her near nude frame._

" _Rhon, put on the robe and get into bed."_

 _She took a step toward shim and he took a step back._

" _I don't get you," Her words were slurred. "You spend all your time as my personal shadow and the one time I hand myself over to you on a silver platter you won't make a damn move."_

" _Rhonda, you're drunk. A little past drunk. Actually I'm not sure how the hell you're still standing actually…"_

" _I'm not that drunk,"_

" _Only drunk people say they're not that drunk." He shook the robe at her. "You forgot how to walk upstairs Rhonda."_

" _Pfthththth…" She waved a hand around. Tad was positive he was blushing but he wasn't sure. She hadn't called him out on it yet so that was something._

" _Taddy…" she whined. He sighed heavily._

" _Ronnie…" he whined back. She wrinkled her nose._

" _Ewww…Taddy, I need you. Why are you not being cooperative?"_

" _Rhon, I am being more than cooperative. I am trying to get you hydrated and to bed to sleep because you need it. You're a quarter way to passing out on your floor. What I am not going to do, Rhonda, is be your drunken hookup."_

" _There are plenty of guys who'd be willing to sleep with me, Tad." She snapped. "You aren't special."_

" _Of course I am," he retorted. "I'm the one standing here not pawing at your half naked body because I have respect for you."_

" _But I know you want me. What is the big deal?"_

 _His hand fell, still holding the robe. His eyes, which had been scanning the walls, the ceiling, the pictures, now fell on her face. He took one determined step towards her._

" _You're right Rhon, I do. Sometimes so much it keeps me up at night. But." Another step. "If we get together, it's going to be when you're stone cold sober."_

 _Another step._

" _Because trust me my goddess, when I finally kiss you, you're going to damn well remember it for days afterwards." He lifted his hand. "Now put on the damn robe and get into bed."_

 _For one moment it looked as if she was going to argue. Her face went pale and her eyes widened. Dropping the robe, he rushed towards her, grabbed her shoulders and pushed her into her bathroom. He made it just to her toilet when she heaved and threw up. She dropped to her knees, hands clutching the rim of the toilet as she threw up the contents of her stomach. Tad sighed heavily._

 _He plucked a washcloth off of the towel stand and ran it under cold water in the sink. He walked back to the still heaving Rhonda and dropping to his knees, scooped her hair back and held it as he ran the cool washcloth over her forehead._

" _Yep." He muttered mostly to himself. "I'm the special one, all right."_

* * *

The minute she saw him again, she knew this was a bad idea.

Helga had sounded sensible when she'd suggested this plan; Tad had always been her sounding board for things she couldn't talk about with her other friends. But the minute the front door opened and she had gotten a good look at him again; the plan was stupendously horrible.

Because this wasn't her Taddy of years past; her sweet jester who listened to her bitch about her parents, held her hair back when she threw up and punched out at least one guy who tried to take advantage of her teenaged drunken years. This Tad was older, dangerous. He was not supposed to still look damn good in jeans and a faded Nirvana tee shirt.

She found herself second guessing everything from the time the door closed on them; should she have gone down the stairs first, what did the back of her hair look like, where should she suggest for lunch.

"Nice car."

She unlocked the doors to her red Volvo.

"Thanks. Any suggestions for lunch?"

He slid into the car easily, his legs hitting the glove compartment. "Where's the…oh."

With some maneuvering, he found the button to move the seat back.  
"Ronnie is short," Rhonda started her car. "She likes to sit up close."

"I can tell. Is there a decent sit down Chinese restaurant around here?"

"There's the popular one downtown. And the better one on the corner of Oak and Sunset."

"Let's go there. I've been in this town for two weeks or so and I am having Chinese food withdrawals."

"Can one have withdrawals from MSG?" she teased.

"It is completely a thing. There's this great little take-out place right outside the studio that Hel and I went to at least three times a week during Ever After. We developed a great relationship with Mrs. Huang."

"What did you have the other four days?"

"It mostly alternated between pizza, the vegan shop by our place and whatever we were in the mood for that day. We rarely actually cooked."

"How long did you and Helga live together?" She turned onto the main street heading towards the older side of town.

"We still live together. Property is expensive in LA and it's easier for us to work together when we have a combined working space." He grinned mischievously. "Why? Jealous?"

"I can imagine you are a horrible person to live with. You probably leave your socks all over the place."

Dammit, even his laughter unnerved her.

"I am amazingly well kept. Although Hel is usually bitching because I track sand into the house when I go to the beach."

Traffic in this part of town was usually low this early in the day. Most everyone ate lunch in the main part of town and only ventured out to Old Town later in the afternoon when the closer restaurants were packed with the lunch crowd. She eyed the street for a parking spot and found one close to the restaurant.

"It must be tough living so close to the beach."

"When we made it big and were finally able to buy our own place instead of living in boxes, Hel wanted a place by the beach. Most of our looking at real estate were places by the beach. We almost bought a two-bedroom condo with a walkout. At the last minute our agent showed us a set of re-fashioned homes on a lark. They were old warehouses that had been repurposed; they were closer inland, at least a mile or two from the beach, completely not what Hel wanted. The minute we walked in, Hel fell in love." He smiled in memory as she parked the car. "Our agent showed us the walkout to the usable roof and Hel made an offer on the spot."

"Because of the roof?"

Another smile. "Don't get me wrong, I fell in love with it too. The entire main area had large windows that open for the illusion of a huge patio area and the entire place is just big, open spaces. And the roof area is pretty damn neat."

They walked up the sidewalk as they talked and Tad held the door open for her.

The inside was tiny but nice. The host took them to a table towards the back. Tad took a seat nodding his thanks to the host.

"What's good here?" he asked, opening the menu and perusing the contents. "I'll take your recommendation."

"I usually get the number twelve when I'm able to get here. The number six is really good too."

"We'll compromise." He put the menu to the side. "You get the number twelve and I'll get the number six and we'll share, if you're up to it."

She relaxed a bit, putting her menu on the edge of the table. "You're on."

"Great."

She gave their order to the server adding in two waters. When the server had left, Tad leaned forward, his elbows resting on the edge of the table. Her heart stuttered.

"So, what was it that sent Hel running to my house and offering to watch my mother so I could tag in?"

It was easier when she was talking to Helga. With the blond one always knew where they stood, even now. She took a deep breath and smiled her thanks at the server who brought the two waters. She hesitated another moment before finally speaking.

"I saw Nadine today."

Tad's gaze on hers never wavered but his expression had softened.

"I had an early meeting on the other side of Manhattan this morning so after I left, I stopped by one of the coffee shops around that area to pick up breakfast on my way back to the office. While in there I ran into Lila. Rather, she was in line behind me."

Tad tightened his lips to keep from grinning.

"She was being her usual bitchy self when suddenly this woman in front of me turns around and just lays into her with these brilliant smart ass comments. That's when I realized it was Nadine. The way they were going at each other it was obvious that this is probably a semi regular thing."

Tad laughed. "Sorry I missed it. But none of this explains why we're here having lunch at eleven in the morning or why you apparently skipped out of work after your run in with Nadine at a coffee shop, because I am assuming there was a run in."

She nodded, taking a drink before continuing.

"After Lila stormed out, I caught Nadine's eye. And we talked…kind of. She asked how I was and if I was visiting New York. And that was it. The entire conversation left me cold and I realized just how much of a bitch I was in high school. I mean, I have no idea what happened to Nadine our Senior year. I had no idea the extent of her and Brian's…whatever they had nor did I have any idea just how far down she'd allowed herself to take that eating disorder. Like I told Helga, the first I knew about it was when everyone else found out. After Brian's breakdown and after Nadine's parents had sent her to the facility, I never even asked after her or called her or anything. I was a horrible person back then. I can understand why the Nadine now wants as little to do with me as possible."

She took another drink as their food arrived. Tad grinned at the plate of food and thanked the server before piling rice and pieces of shrimp and chicken onto his plate.

"Oh, come to daddy!" he exclaimed rubbing his hands and picking up his fork. Rhonda couldn't help but grin at his expression as he took the first bite of food.

"Oh, Chinese food how I've missed you so much." He speared another piece of chicken and eyed the plate in front of Rhonda. "You said you'd share."

"Actually, you're the one who suggested we share, but please." She gestured towards her spicy beef and pineapple mixture. He scooped some off the serving plate and onto his own plate.

He took another bit of the beef and moaned in appreciation. The moan sent shivers down her spine and she tried to distract herself with spicy beef.

"Little known fact," Tad finally spoke. "Nadine and I exchange emails probably monthly. It's something Hel doesn't know and I've never seen a reason to tell her. It started while she was in rehab and just kept up. I'm not going to go into specifics regarding what happened after Hel found her passed out in the bathroom but with the help of Gerald, who called in contacts, we managed to keep it under wraps, convince Nadine she needed help and help her parents find a quiet facility. After that…well, you know nothing is a secret forever."

"No offense, but why you?" she asked. "After all this time, why did she only keep in contact with you?"

He smiled and took another bite before answering.

"I was your friend in high school Rhon. And, by proxy, Nadine's. She knew she could trust me with her secrets, God knows I had enough of yours at the time. Afterwards," he shrugged. "I don't know. But I kept in correspondence with her because she needed someone on the outside to talk to that wouldn't cause any undue stressors and I had enough going on in my life that someone who wasn't in on the day to day happenings of Hillwood High was almost a welcome relief. I'm not the only person she keeps in contact with though. I know she and Sheena ran into each other more than a couple of years back and at the time she said Sheena was showing her how to cleanse her aura through yoga and meditation. As crazy as it sounds, she said it was actually working for her."

He put down his fork and reached over the table to touch her hand. "Nadine's had to drag herself back from a really dark place. It was a slow going and she was hurt a lot in the process. Give her some slack for acting a little stand offish."

He moved his hand and went back to eating. "Although if she's taking on Lila in a battle of wills and winning, then the girl's doing a damn sight better than she thinks she is."

Rhonda had frozen when he touched her hand, the feeling of warmth on her hand startled her for a moment. In their last two conversations, he hadn't touched her; even when she handed him her card, he took care not to touch her when he took it. Her heart pounded against her chest so loud she barely heard what he was saying. As fast as that, it was over. His hand was no longer on hers and she missed it. The adrenaline boost she got from one simple touch was insane. It had been a long time since she'd felt that rush from a person's touch. She forced herself to take a deep breath and took a drink of her water, willing her hands to stop shaking. It took some time before she trusted herself to speak.

"You're right, of course."

"I usually am," he retorted, taking another bite. "As soon as the woman in my life understand that, the easier my life will be."

"Let's talk about something else." She suggested. "We're only halfway through lunch and it's going to be really awkward if we just sit in silence for the rest of the meal."

"Good idea, so tell me Ms. Lloyd, just what does a buyer do?"

* * *

"Xander Miller just asked me out."

Three heads turned simultaneously to look at a shell-shocked Isabelle.

"Like, on a date?" Alyssa asked. "Or like girlfriend?"

"Haven't you two been flirting it up in Calculus?" Ronnie asked.

"What did you say?" Daphne asked at the same time.

Isabella sat down at the lunch table as if in a trance.

"I said yes?"

The table erupted in cheers.

"Did I do the right thing? What am I thinking?"

"That Xander is hot and he totally just asked you out." Alyssa answered. "And that you totally get to kiss him and you have to tell your three best friends how he kisses."

Isabella blushed.

"Really, you don't have to tell me," Ronnie said, taking pity on her poor, shell-shocked friend. "I'm just glad you're happy. You are happy, right?"

Isabella nodded, finally coming out of her trance. "Yes. Yes! I really like him and oh my God I'm dating Xander Miller."

Alyssa high fived her.

"Does this mean no more study groups with us now?" Daphne teased.

"I'm wondering how your Dad is going to flip when he finds out you're dating someone." Ronnie added.

"Quit jockeying for favorite daughter position," Alyssa joked. "We all know you're already second favorite adopted daughter because you two have the same iron clad stomach."

"Another one of our group lost to love," Ronnie lamented, ignoring Alyssa's joke.

"You said you're too caught up in your studies to have a boyfriend," Alyssa countered.

"And I am. I'll think about romance after I get my degree."

"You're going to miss out on life if you keep your head in the books." Ronnie shrugged.

"I doubt it." She waved her fork towards Alyssa. "One of us has to be the studious bookworm in this group.

"Are you actually going on a date?" Daphne asked, ignoring the playful bickering from her other two friends. Isabella shrugged.

"I don't know. It all happened so fast. I was coming in here and he caught my arm and said Hey Isabella, I need to ask you something. And I'm confused so I said okay. And he pulls me into the art alcove and says, I really like you Izzy and was wondering if you want to date. Well I'm just shocked because yeah we've been flirting hard the last couple of months but he likes me? So I stuttered out a yes and he just grins that really nice grin he has, you know, the one that crinkles the sides of his eyes and says, cool and kisses me on the cheek and says meet me after school at the statue. And then he left."

"Wait, back up, he kissed you already and you left that part out earlier?" Alyssa asked outraged.

"Initiate Lyss swooning," Daphne intoned, picking up her soda. Alyssa waved a hand in front of her.

"That is so romantic,"

"He does have nice eyes," Ronnie agreed. Isabella nodded.

"Doesn't he though?"

"So you're meeting him after school by the statue. Got it. We'll tie Lyss up so she can't take video." Daphne teased. Her friend stuck out her tongue.

"That's really unfair guys, it's not like I would post it on LookBook."

"Just remember, our parents are friends too," Ronnie reminded them. "And even though some of them might not have LookBook, the others do and if one knows it's only a matter of time before everyone knows."

Isabella pointed her fork at Ronnie. "That. Yes. Lyss, nothing on social media. At least not until I can talk to my Mom and get her help to break this to my Dad."

Alyssa mock pouted as she picked up her soda. "Well hurry up, because I'm not sure how long I can keep this juicy piece of information off the socials."

* * *

"I regret to inform you that your ex sounds like a complete D-bag."

Rhonda nodded, cracking open her fortune cookie. Somehow, he'd gotten her to tell him all about Dashiell and their marriage. Things she'd only told Arnold and some things she'd never told anyone. It had always been easy to talk to Tad. His easy demeanor and supporting non-judgmental attitude towards all of her mistakes and decisions had always made her comfortable talking to him.

It was quite possible he knew more of her secrets back in high school than even Nadine. Her heart clinched in regret again and she looked down at her fortune.

 **One who admires you greatly is hidden before your eyes.**

She lifted her gaze and watched Tad smirking as he read his fortune. In grade school, he was her insane stalker, constantly chasing her around and cackling maniacally when she yelled at him. Blackmailing her to be his girlfriend.

In middle school he just…disappeared. She never knew where he went and he never offered up the information. When they reached high school, everything was different. He was different. More laid back, less…creepy.

And somehow he'd snuck himself into her inner circle and into her trust. She knew he still had feelings for her back then, he never bothered to hide that fact, he just…never used his position as her friend to encroach any favors.

To be honest, she was not innocent in their decades long game. She was the one to turn the tables on him and extended their "dating period", she was the one who used his friendship and self-proclaimed "personal bodyguard" status to her own advantage. She was the one who'd drunkenly hit on him not once but three times while they were in high school.

And like in fourth grade, he's always been the first to give her an out. To make sure she was the one who came out looking good while he took the hits.

Her thoughts ventured back to Helga and Arnold, who, after decades, had finally ended up together.

She'd watched Ever After, seen the interactions between Brooke and Theo. If Helga had spent all this time still on love with Arnold, the show made no qualms of making it obvious, then did that mean that there was a chance that Tad…

"You're staring."

She blinked, his voice pulling her out of her thoughts.

He was finishing the rest of his water, looking at her over the rim of his glass.

"Now you're blushing." He grinned, the casual half grin he'd perfected back in high school. "I know my careless good looks are breath taking but I'm full up on groupies at the moment, sorry."

His quip should have broken the moment, as always, but this time it didn't.

"You ready?"

He nodded, tossing his napkin on the table. He stood up and gestured towards the door.

"All right, Rhon, what's wrong?" He asked was soon as they were out of the restaurant. "You were okay I thought, until a few minutes ago."

"I…" she took a deep breath. "I was thinking about how much I missed you Tad. This," she waved between them. "Easy way we have between us."

"Ah. Well, I missed you too."

They were near her car. Rhonda took another deep breath. She had always gone for what she wanted, why stop now?

Tad was standing on the sidewalk next to her car when she moved. Stepping into his personal space, she saw the flash of realization in his eyes the second before she lifted up on her toes and pressed her lips to his.

He started, his hip hitting the side of the car as one foot stepped back to keep his balance. His hands came up to her shoulders and he pulled her away.

"Rhonda," he sounded cautious. "What are you doing?"

"Well, on the East Coast we call it kissing. Why? What do you call it on the West Coast?"

"Very funny. Let me expound. Why are you kissing me?"

"Are we really having this conversation now?"

"I'm afraid so goddess."

She smiled slowly.

"Oh good. I was afraid for a moment I had overstepped and you had stopped worshipping me."

He stared at her and then gave a huge sigh.

"There will only ever be one alter I worship at, goddess."

Still smiling, she reached up again. His hands tightened on her shoulders.

"Are you sure?"

"Shut up and kiss me Tad."

Her lips crashed into his again and instead of pulling away, his arms went around her to pull her towards him, one hand sliding to grip her hip.

Her mind spun. She hadn't expected the possessive heat as he took control of the kiss, lips and teeth and tongue clashing. Her body temperature flared up, need pooling in the pit of her stomach.

She pushed herself closer, needing to be as close to him as possible. He groaned into her mouth, his fingers on her hips tightening.

He finally pulled back first, breathing hard. She made a small sound of protest, trying to move back in for more, but he held firm.

"This is probably not the best place for this…conversation."

His voice was low and breathless, making all of her nerve endings tingle.

Then she remembered they were still standing by her car, in old town Hillwood, in the middle of lunch hour, not at all appropriately almost tangled into each other.

She took a step back and clicked the button on the key fob to unlock the car.

"Get in."

She walked around the car on unsteady legs and slid into the driver's seat. Tad was already in the passenger seat, looking at her with a mixture of confusion and lust.

Her mind was whirling as she started the car and pulled out into the street. Not with thoughts of this being a bad idea, but of quick calculations.

 _It's 12:30 on a Wednesday, Mrs. Davenport won't be at the house and school gets out at three pm. Ronnie will be at Alyssa's today and usually she would get home around five…_

"Where are we going?"

Tad's voice broke into her thoughts.

"My house."

His quick laugh was tinged with disbelief.

"Seriously?"

"As a sale at Bloomingdale's."

"Rhonda, are you sure you want…"

His voice died off as she took one hand off the wheel and placed it on his jean clad thigh. She could feel the muscles bunching under her touch.

"Tad, quit trying to talk us both out of this. We're going back to my place and then you can decide what you want to do."

The whole trip took eleven minutes, the entirety of which Tad kept his mouth shut. Somewhere along the way, however, his hand had come to rest on top of hers.

She pulled into the driveway and moved her hand to shut off the car. He climbed out and quietly followed her up the walk and to the front door.

As she unlocked the door, one question popped into her head.

 _Do you really want to do this?_

The door opened and she walked in, opening it further for Tad to follow. Dropping her purse and keys on the small table beside the entrance, she turned back as he shut and locked the door. He had enough time to turn around before she was stepping towards him again and lifting up to kiss him.

 _Hell yes, she wanted to do this._

Unlike the first kiss where he hesitated, Tad was fully on board this time, even taking the lead.

His hands went to her hips and she gasped into his mouth when he spun her and stepped her back. Her back hit her front door as he moved in angling his head to deepen the kiss.

There was nothing sweet about this, this was dark and deep, hot and wet and everything she needed. Her arms wound around his neck, fingers combing and tangling through his hair, pulling at the strands as one of his hands slid down her hip. He clutched her thigh and hitched up her leg around his own hip. The skirt of her dress hitched up with the move and his fingers were suddenly on bare skin.

She was desperate. He surrounded her senses, his chest was flush against hers, his hands were stroking her skin and his tongue…

She unwound her arms from his neck and reached down to grab the bottom of his tee shirt and begin to tug upwards, her nails dragging against his skin as she lifted.

She could feel his low groan vibrate in his chest as he broke the kiss, his mouth moving hotly down the side of her face and neck.

"You're killing me Rhonda," his voice was next to her ear. She felt him lick a trail from the juncture of her neck to a spot near her ear she didn't know was sensitive until now. She gasped, her eyes fluttering closed and she arched her back, her nails digging into his side.

He pulled away and looked down at her, his eyes a deep brown.

"Bedroom?"

"Through here, small hall to the right."

He smiled mischievously.

"Hold on."

He slid both hands under her ass and lifted. Her legs wrapped around his waist and locked together as he turned and walked through the great room and down the right hall towards her bedroom.

Her bedroom door was open partially so he bumped it open fully using one of her legs. He walked through the room, depositing her on her bed. He bent down and kissed her hard while untangling her arms and legs from him. As he straightened, he pointed a finger at her.

"Stay."

She was too dazed to move, merely watched him as he crossed the room to shut and lock her bedroom door.

She was alone. In her bedroom. With Thaddeus Gumblethorpe.

He walked back towards her, pulling off his tee shirt as he walked and tossing it carelessly onto the floor. Rhonda's eyes widened. Tan skin, tones abs, dark hair smattering his upper chest…

If she could go back in time and tell her ten-year-old self or even her high school self that one day she would be sitting on her bed watching a half-naked Thaddeus walk towards her looking like sin, both past hers would've laughed.

He dropped to his knees in front of her and her breath caught in her throat.

Slowly, he lifted one leg and unzipped her boots, sliding them from her feet, followed by the book socks she'd worn with them. The other boot and sock followed.

As the second boot hit the floor, his gaze raked slowly up her body; bare legs, dress hiked up to her hips and rumpled, her lips swollen, until he finally met her eyes.

He grinned. A dark grin that promised she was in for a ride.

In that one brief moment, with him kneeling before her slightly spread legs, that dark grin and a gleam in his eye, she saw her Tad. Her mad jester, her shadow, her protector, the boy who'd made a promise while still respecting her body.

 _Trust me goddess, when I finally kiss you you're going to damn well remember it for days afterwards._

"Hold on goddess, because you're about to be worshipped."

Oh yeah, she was going to feel this.

* * *

They had it wrong. Sometimes, reality was better than fantasy.

Spending the better part of an afternoon in bed with the woman he'd worshipped since the third grade had at one time been so far on his "never gonna happen" list that "get rich and famous" had actually been checked off first.

Now, he looked down at the raven haired beauty napping on his chest and couldn't figure out how the heck anything this afternoon had happened.

When he was cornered by his best friend/business partner, he fully expected to suck it up, maybe go to lunch, play it cool and maybe get a hug when she dropped him off at his parents…

SHIT!

He moved the arm idly resting on Rhonda's shoulder so he could see the time.

Four-fifteen.

Oh, he was so busted.

Rhonda stirred, raising her head from his chest to look sleepily up at him. Oh who did he have to offer thankful sacrifices to for this gift?

Her lips curved into a lazy smile.

 _He was so damned_ , he thought as he pulled her up to him, lips claiming hers once more. Everything about her overwhelmed him; her scent, her voice, the way her body moved. For one brief moment, he was her Tad.

"Tad," she murmured against his mouth. He broke the kiss, his eyes still closed.

"You're killing me Rhon."

"What time is it?"

Shit. His parents.

"Four-fifteen."

"Shit!"

She rolled out of bed and started grabbing clothes. He was momentarily struck by her naked backside as she tried to put on her underwear.

"Thaddeus."

He sat up, the covers pooling at his hips, an amused smile on his lips.

An annoyed, naked Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd holding up a ripped pair of lace panties was truly a sight to behold.

"Don't give me that smug smile, you ripped my underwear."

"I'll buy you a new pair, I'll buy you ten new pair."

"That's not the point."

His smile widened.

"You didn't seem to mind at the time."

His boxer briefs were thrown at him, hitting his chest. Chuckling, he slid them on and went about the room picking up pieces of clothing and putting them on.

Rhonda was running between the bedroom and the attached bathroom getting redressed and fixing her hair and makeup. He slid on his shirt and walked into the bathroom, sliding up behind her and kissing the side of her neck.

Her eyes fell closed for a moment and she leaned back against his chest.

"I have to get you back to your parent's house."

"I know," his lips were still on her skin as his arms wrapped around her waist. "When's Ronnie getting home?"

"In about thirty minutes."

He stood there for one moment more, holding her to him, trying to keep this memory locked in his brain for the future. Reluctantly, he let her go.

"We'd better get going."

She grabbed his wrist before he could move too far from her, her eyes catching his in the mirror.

"What are you doing this weekend?"

He grinned.

* * *

Helga knew how to cook, usually she just never had the time or a reason.

She stood in the Gumblethorpe's kitchen checking on the chicken breasts she'd put in the oven earlier.

"Smells good in here."

Helga looked up from the potatoes and smiled at the older man peeking around the corner of the kitchen area.

"Hey Ken, how was work?"

"The same. Where's Tad?"

"We're getting grandbabies!" Aggie chirped happily from the couch. Ken looked from his wife to Helga. Helga shrugged.

"I just gave her the evening meds."

"Ah. What's for dinner?"

"Grilled chicken breast and baby potatoes and carrots."

"Sounds delicious."

"And about finished. You have enough time to change if you want and help Aggie into the kitchen."

She was pulling the chicken out and setting the table when Ken stepped back into the living room area. The door to the apartment opened and Tad stepped in as Ken was helping Aggie to the dining room table.

"Am I getting grandbabies?" she asked, as he shut the door. He looked at Helga who was studiously transferring the glass cooking plate to a hot plate.

"It was Chinese food. I don't think they give out babies with the daily special Mom."

"Tad, what is she talking about?" Ken asked as he took his seat. Tad crossed the room and sat down next to him.

"I have no idea. I went to lunch with a friend."

He ignored Helga's soft snort of derision as she put the plates on the table and sat down. Ken narrowed his eyes towards his son.

"A friend? What was this friend's name?"

Suddenly he felt like he was in grade school again.

"Rhonda."

"Ah. Well that explains your mother."

Dinner was the usual noisy affair, Ken sharing the more interesting stories he'd heard during the day from customers, while Tad and Helga discussed their next projects with them, Aggie interjecting every once in a while, with an old story she'd heard when she was younger or asking questions.

After dinner, Tad helped Helga clean up the kitchen and after saying goodnight, they two left.

Tad walked down the stairs, locking the outside door as they left, the entire time waiting for Helga to say something about the fact that he'd been gone almost six hours.

She didn't say a word until they were in the car and he had made it half way down the street.

"So?"  
"I knew you were dying to ask!" he announced loudly, waving one hand in her direction.

"Don't deflect. You were gone for over six hours and I know your "I got laid" look: I've seen it enough after some of your vacations or dates. I'll ask again, so?"

"We went to lunch. I got Chinese and you didn't."

"Well that's hardly fair. But again, you're deflecting. Lunch does not take six hours, even if you two did linger over coffee. So, is Aggie getting grandbabies."

He shot her a quick glare and he turned onto the main road. "That's your fault, isn't it?"

"Maybe. You were so quick to push me towards Arnold and what you called "fun, sexy time" and like I said earlier, payback is a bitch. So…did you end up back at her place for coffee?"

"We never made it to coffee." He finally admitted. Helga laughed.

"Congratulations. Well?"

Tad sighed heavily. "Hel, it was great. Better than great. I'm sure it surpassed even my addled teenaged fantasies. But it was a one-time thing. Unlike you, who has been in a committed relationship, albeit online, for over a year, this was the first time I've seen Rhon since we left. The last thing she is ever going to do is end up at my doorstep in the rain declaring her undying love."

"If she does, get that on video because I want to see it." She grew contemplative. "So, you aren't seeing her again?"

He grinned. "I didn't say that. We have a date for Saturday night. Apparently it's Timberly and Devon's weekend, whatever that means."

"It means the girls switch houses every weekend. It means this weekend all four girls will be spending the night at Lyss' house. It means Rhonda has a kid free weekend."

"So does Arnold by that logic."

"Yes, but he had the girls this weekend while I was there so the girls' are already used to me…or at least half of them are. Apparently Ronnie is not used to her mom having fun sexy times with anyone much less the male part of the duo that created her favorite television show."

"How am I going to explain this? Yes Ronnie, I knew your mother in high school. In fact, she's the inspiration for one half of your favorite couple on Ever After. That is going to go great."

"First, that would be Rhonda's conversation with Ronnie, not yours. And, you can only hope it doesn't go any worse than when Daphne figured it out."

"You got lucky."

Helga smiled. "Yes, I did."

"So, am I dropping you off at Arnold's?"

"Nope." She leaned back in the leather seats. "Home, James. We can work on story ideas."

"Ah, back to normalcy."

* * *

 **AN:** First, I want to thank everyone who have read my stories and commented/reviewed. So, some housekeeping issues. As mentioned in "Ever After" Daphne belongs to Arnold and Lila, who are officially divorced. Isabella belongs to Harold and Patty, Alyssa belongs to Timberly and Devon, she is the niece of Gerald's and Veronica is Rhonda and Dashall's kid. It seems there's been some confusion.

Also, I experiment with characters in my stories. I also post ships in the description of the fic. If you do not like the ship, please feel free to skip over it. It won't hurt my feelings at all. I recently wrote a fic for a Secret Santa gift. The recipient asked me to post it for everyone else to read as they really liked the story. It's not a ship I normally write, but it was this person's request so I did it.

If you don't like a ship, PLEASE do not write hate on the reviews. Or have enough guts to not do it on "Guest" It's rude, and it's hateful especially to the person who asked for it. Those who follow me on Tumblr and have been unwilling recipients to my recent obsession know I do not tolerate ship wank. I am a huge proponent of YSINMSATOK. Because of this I will be doing the rare (for me) practice of deleting anon comments.

Also, there will be another chapter posted on the 25th. Happy Christmas!


	11. Chapter 11

**AN** : As promised, the next chapter. Enjoy your day my friends!

* * *

 _Rhonda's parties were all the same; loud music, drunken teens, someone deciding pole vaulting/slip n slide into the pool was a great idea-no matter the season, random hook ups, passed out kids come the next morning._

 _She had no idea why she kept coming to these parties…wait, yes she did. She came because Tad came to every once to make sure Rhonda was safe. It was stupid, self-defeating and pathetic._

 _She couldn't fault him for it at all. Which was why she came with him every time-for him._

 _She stepped over the bodies on the floor, the empty cups trying to make her way to someplace quiet. She was tired-staying up too late to study for a test the night before- and all she wanted to do was find someplace where she could think in peace._

 _Tad would find her when he wanted to leave, he always did._

 _She heard a familiar giggle and slowed her steps on the stairs to peek over the bannister._

 _Lila stood in the corner of the large living room talking to a Senior who was way in to her personal space._

 _Without a word she climbed the stairs. She didn't want to know. If she knew then she'd get angry and if she got angry then she'd take it out on the wrong person._

 _Upstairs was a little quieter but she knew from experience that appearances could be deceiving._

 _The third door down she put her ear to, just in case and then knocked. Nothing._

 _She opened the door enough to peek in first._

 _The room looked empty._

 _She slipped into the darkened guest room with a relieved sigh, locking the door behind her._

 _The room was illuminated by one lone floor lamp on the other side of the room and the moonlight streaming in from the windows. It was just enough light for her to find her way to the rumpled bed. She learned by now that if the bedsheets were rumpled, nine times out of ten she probably didn't want to sit on it due to wet spots and other bodily fluids._

 _Bypassing the rumpled bed, she walked across the room and pulled the curtains open further and opened the window. The sounds from the drunk kids still splashing in the pool entered the room but it was only loud enough to provide background noise._

 _The plan was to drag the comfy looking chair across the room to the window so she could look out and write. She was a writer, any good writer worth her or his salt always carried a notebook and pens with them at all times._

 _The plan suddenly derailed when a pained moan came from the bed as she started to move the chair._

 _She let out a choked yelp and then silently berated herself for acting like the stereotypical white girl in a horror movie._

 _The lump in the bed moved slightly and she realized someone was in the room with her after all. If they were drunk enough to fall asleep it would be no trouble to get them out of the room and somewhere else. Finding an empty room was like a treasure and she was not about to give up her treasure._

 _Determined, she strode to the bed and yanked the covers off. Arnold was curled up in the bed, one hand weakly covering his face._

" _Too bright," he muttered._

 _The blonde was the last person she expected to see._

" _What the…are you drunk?" she asked, not bothering to lower her voice. He grimaced, his hand moving to his ears._

" _Too loud," he groaned._

" _Tough luck, bucko," she growled, throwing the covers to the ground and throwing herself onto the bed. The mattress wobbled as she crawled up next to him and sat cross-legged on the other half of the queen sized bed watching him. Arnold groaned again._

" _I will throw up on you."_

" _Do it football head and I'll have you washing all my clothes for a month."_

 _She watched as he carefully rolled over and peered up at her._

" _Helga?"_

" _Doi. What possessed you to get smashed like the rest of these losers?"_

" _Lila said I was boring and pre…pre…dictable."_

 _Lila. The same Lila who was currently downstairs flirting with some Senior idiot instead of keeping an eye on her lightweight boyfriend? Which was completely none of her business._

" _So you decided to get blitzed to prove you're not boring and predictable? Good going Arnoldo, you sure showed her."_

" _I think I drank too much."_

" _Really."_

 _He scooted over until he could throw a limp arm over her knee. She immediately froze._

" _Stupid idea, I know, but take pity on me, would ya?"_

 _She harrumphed, glaring at him. When he didn't move, her gaze softened. Hesitantly, she lifted her hand and stroked his brow. He sighed, nuzzling into her hand._

" _You are just pathetic," she sighed. "And I hate to see pathetic things suffer. Try to sleep some of this off and I'll call Phoebe later to have Geraldo come pick up your drunken self. I'll drop the Packard off at his house when I leave."_

" _Keys are in my pocket," he murmured, half asleep._

" _Oh no, get them out now. There is no way I'm digging through your jean pockets for keys later."_

 _With a bit of maneuvering, he dug out the keys and half tossed them into her lap._

" _Don't know what I'd do without you,"_

 _She moved so her back was leaning against the headboard to get comfortable. She was in for a while, might as well be comfortable. He moved with her, sliding up the bed until his face was buried against her outer thigh, her hand still running through his hair as she slept._

 _This wasn't how she had planned to spend her Friday night, but right now, she wasn't going to complain one bit._

* * *

"So you have a date tonight?"

Tad slid on his suit jacket and looked at Hel's reflection in his mirror. She was leaning against the bedroom doorframe watching him get dressed.

"You say it like it's a bad thing."

She pushed off the doorframe and walked into the room.

"It's not a bad thing. And I am the last person to talk about bad decisions. I'm just…making sure you're okay."

He turned from the mirror. "I'm fine Hel. It'll be fine. I have this under control. Now, shouldn't you be getting ready for Arnold?"

He grinned at her blush. "He's dropping the girls at Timberly's, he said he'd stop by afterwards to pick me up."

On cue the doorbell rang.

"Isn't it great he knows where you're staying."

"Shut up Tad." She grumbled, following him as they walked through the house. He picked up his keys and wallet as Helga opened the front door. Arnold stepped in with a smile and dropped a quick kiss on her lips.

"Hey Tad, looking good."

"Thanks." He tightened his watch around his wrist and brushed back his hair one last time. "Have fun guys, Hel, don't do anything I wouldn't."

"Considering you're the more…adventurous between the two of us, that gives me way more free reign than I'm comfortable with."

He laughed as he passed Arnold on his way out the door.

He had a date to attend.

* * *

"You look ravishing."

Rhonda opened the door wearing a red silk wrap dress with matching heels. Tad took a moment while she picked up her clutch and locked the door behind her to stare at her outright. Words and phrasing he was good at, convincing execs to part with their money and capital was child's play to him. But an old high school crush standing before him looking like the goddess he's always touted her to be was beyond even his ability.

"Ready?"

His smile was firmly on his face was he held out an arm.

"Goddess, I've been ready for years."

That received a light chuckle as she took his arm and allowed him to escort her to the car.

"Where are we going?" she asked as he climbed into the driver's side and started the car.

"I thought we should leave town and drive up the coast a little way. I made reservations at this place two towns over. It came highly recommended."

"sounds lovely. You really didn't have to go through all of this trouble."

"It's no trouble at all, you deserve spoiling."

He pulled onto the road leading to the coast, the ocean air blowing lightly through the partially rolled down windows. She leaned her head back against the headrest.

"I've been spoiled most of my life Tad; this is probably the first time in my life my feet have been on the ground."

"Don't sell yourself short, Rhon, you are still allowed to spoil yourself after seventeen years and if I'm the lucky man doing the spoiling, then, lucky me."

She laughed lightly.

* * *

The night was calm and cloudless, the full moon glinting off the ocean, its mirror effect almost mesmerizing as it was calming. With the radio softly playing classical music, it felt mostly like a dream so when he finally pulled into the parking for the restaurant, she turned languidly wondering why they'd stopped.

Spotting the large cream building, a smile slid slowly across her face.

"I love Avenue; how did you know?"

He handed the keys to the valet and crossed in front of the car to help her out.

"Goddess, I listened and I remembered. I reserved a table outside, you don't mind, do you?"

"Mind? I love it," she took his hand and allowed him to escort her into the building.

Dashiel had taken her to places much more lavish and expensive but never in their seven years of marriage was she ever as touched as she was with this one simple gesture.

Her parents had taken her here only a handful of times when she was older and she remembered each of those times with a fondness.

She had to have talked about it either at school or somewhere else where Tad had been present for him to remember. But for him to remember something so trivial even after almost twenty-five years…

The matre de led them to their table and Rhonda glanced at the sand and ocean highlighted by the moon as she took her seat. The view was still as breathtaking as it was the very first time she'd come here with her parents.

"This view is gorgeous." She breathed, picking up her menu. Tad looked at the beach and the water before turning his attention back to the menu.

"It is."

"I could honestly stay out here all night and just watch the waves lap onto the beach."

"If that's what you want, we have all the time in the world. I'm just your escort for this evening."

He spared no expense for this dinner; wine service brought to the table, appetizers of pissaladiere, they agreed to the Cote de Boeuf which came in a plats pour deux, for dessert she chose the crème bruilee and snuck bites of his profiteroles, laughing when chocolate sauce dripped on his arm.

They lingered for hours over everything, enjoying themselves and by the end she was feeling sated and a little tipsy.

"I couldn't eat another bite." She announced, sitting back in her chair, wine glass in hand. Tad lifted the last forkful of his dessert.

"I guess I'll have to finish this off."

"Please do."

She watched him lick off the chocolate sauce from the fork, a familiar warmth coursing through her body. He leaned over, bottle in hand and filled her glass first before pouring the remainder into his.

"This has been so lovely."

"Night's still young, goddess." He took a drink from his glass.

"Thaddeus Gumblethorpe, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you've been seducing me."

He shook his head, putting the glass back on the table.

"Not at all. If I were attempting a seduction, it'd be grander."

She smiled as she sipped her wine.

Between work, where she was the lead buyer and her personal life, where she was a single mom and co-guardian to a group of amazing young women, she hardly ever had the time or inclination to relax and just…not be on guard. To just relax and not worry what was next on the agenda or where she was going next. Tonight, here, she was more than happy to allow the handsome man across from her to take the lead this evening.

He watched her looking back at the ocean, a serine smile playing on her lips.

"I was thinking maybe a walk on the beach?"

Their server appeared as she looked back at him. He handed over his card.

"Can we do that?"

"We can do anything we want."

"I'm wearing heels."

He shrugged, signing the bill the server handed him and tucking the card back into his wallet.

"Take them off. Rhonda, if you want to walk on the beach, we will walk on the beach."

She smiled wider, placing her napkin on the table.

"Let's go walk on the beach."

He stood and held a hand out to her. With the smile still on her lips, she took his hand and allowed him to help her up.

He nodded to the matre de as they left via the side entrance that led to the beach.

She supported herself against his arm as she slipped off her heels and took her first step onto the cool sand, enjoying the feel of the grains of sand between her toes.

He took her shoes from her with his free hand, holding her hand with the other and letting her lead.

They walked slowly down the beach in comfortable silence, her hand slipping from his as she neared the lapping waves of the ocean, laughing lightly as the water lapped over her feet.

Tad watched her; bare feet wet, dress and hair blowing in the light ocean breeze and his heart clenched.

When he was younger, never in his wildest dreams did he ever envision a moment like this with her. Realistically, he thought maybe at the most extreme he'd end up with a drunken hook-up at a class reunion or something but a nighttime walk on the beach with the woman of his dreams?

If he wasn't careful, there was a very dangerous chance of falling in love with her. Adult Tad had sworn off of love.

Besides, Hel was the romantic, not him. She was the one most deserving of falling head first into love.

Rhonda looked back at Tad standing just a little further back on the shore, one hand in his pants pocket, the other holding her shoes. Suit jacket open, dark hair ruffling in the breeze, dark eyes watching her. She never asked where his glasses had gone, assuming he was either wearing contacts or had gotten Lasik. She never minded the glasses in high school; he'd gotten thin wire rims that suited him much better than those horrid coke bottle glasses he wore in grade school. And guys in glasses were just sexy. Not that he wasn't... but she wondered if he still wore them for time to time, thinking she'd really like to see him in them if he did.

She walked back onto permanent dry land, feeling the sand sticking to her feet as she walked towards him. She didn't stop as she approached him and he didn't move, probably waiting for her to tell him they were moving further up the coast. She lifted her arms when she reached him and slid them up his shoulder, her mouth catching his, catching him unaware yet again. His hand left his pocket and wrapped around her waist as he kissed her back, his mouth hot against hers.

"Have you ever had sex on a beach?" she asked, her lips still against his. She felt his lips curl upward.

"The drink or actual sex on a beach?"

"Actually having sex on a beach."

He chuckled low. "I haven't actually, but I hear it's quite messy and uncomfortable what with sand getting everywhere."

"So that's a no?"

His lips brushed against hers, his tongue poking out to run across her lips.

"Goddess, you deserve candlelight and silk sheets, not sand in your underwear and a potential arrest record."

Her arms went around his neck, her body pressed against his, her head raised to look up at him.

"Then find me candles and silk sheets."

His brow furrowed. "Rhonda, I didn't ask you to dinner because I was expecting anything."

"You said this was my night, right?"

He nodded. She slid one hand down his body slowly, stopping right above the zipper of his pants.

"Then I want my night to end with candles, silk sheets and mind blowing orgasms."

His mouth quirked up in a lopsided grin. "Whatever my goddess demands."

* * *

Rhonda woke up to quiet talking in the other room. Yawning, she rolled over, smiling at the aches in her body.

Last night was everything he'd promised her. From renting a room at the Ocean Place Resort a short walk from the restaurant to the candlelight he'd promised. It was all like a dream. A dream or a good romantic movie where the main characters finally fall together after years of dancing around each other with soft music and candlelight, gentle touches and murmured endearments.

Stretching again, she climbed out of bed, finding a soft robe laying at the end of the bed. She slipped it on and padded towards the curtains, pulling them back and looking out the window at the ocean view.

She only hoped the dream didn't turn into an awkward nightmare.

She heard a door close in the other room and she walked across the room towards the main room of the suite, ignoring the clothing still scattered on the floor, tightening the lapels of the robe closer around her.

She stepped into the main room, spotting Tad in a matching robe rolling a food cart into the middle of the room. Until then, she hadn't realized how tense she'd been. She knew he wouldn't just sneak out and leave her there…or at least she hoped she knew he wasn't the kind of person who would do that. He looked up, smiling as she entered the room.

"Good morning beautiful. I ordered breakfast."

She could smell the coffee and almost groaned in delight. "Can I just keep you forever?"

His smile was easy and never wavered as he poured her a cup and handed it to her. "You'd get bored of me soon enough."

He caught her hand as she reached for the cup and pulled her to him, dropping a soft kiss on her lips before releasing the mug.

"I ordered a continental breakfast, I wasn't sure if you would be hungry after last night's dinner."

"If I remember correctly, I believe I may have burned it all off after last night's activities." She lifted a silver dome and picked up a croissant. He placed a bag next to the chair she'd taken with her coffee.

"What's this?" She put down her coffee and pulled out the items in the bag.

"I wanted to give you the option of wearing something else out of here tonight." He said as she pulled out a crème silk blouse, a patterned wrap skirt and matching sandals. "I mean, the dress you had on last night is amazing, really, I adore it, but I wasn't sure if you wanted to walk out of here in evening wear."

Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the outfit. She looked up at him stunned.  
"What about you?"

"Oh, I bought myself a pair of pants and a shirt. But unfortunately, because I'm a guy I could walk out of here in the same outfit and nobody would give me a second glance."

"You…you didn't have to do this."

He shrugged, sipping his coffee and taking a seat in the opposite plush chairs. "I don't want you feeling even the least bit uncomfortable. I didn't plan anything past dinner last night, everything else was on the fly. I would hate if you regretted, or felt uncomfortable regarding anything about last night."

Her cup stopped halfway to her lips.

"Where did you come from?"

"Hollywood?"

Dammit, she might be a little in love with his infuriating man.

She put down her cup and stood up, untying the tie on her robe as she walked towards him. The robe fell from her shoulders to pool on the floor as she straddled his lap. He blinked up at her startled, hurriedly putting down his cup.

"What time is checkout?" she asked, loosening the tie on his robe.

"Eleven am."

"And it's…"

"Eight thirty?"

The robe loosened and she slid her hands inside, fingers brushing against his bare chest. He slid his hands over her waist, pulling her into a searing kiss that she enthusiastically reciprocated.

* * *

The convertible finally pulled up in front of her house a little after one, the top down and rock music blaring from the speakers. Bless him, before they'd left, he'd gotten her a scarf to wrap around her hair so they could drive with the top down. She felt like the princess Helga had always called her.

"Thank you, I had an amazing time."

"The pleasure was mine."

She leaned towards him, coquettishly. "I have some work that I need to finish but if you aren't busy later maybe you'd like to come over? I could cook. Ronnie won't be back until late tomorrow morning."

His fingers tangled in the end of her scarf and he tugged gently. She followed the tug willingly and met him in a short kiss.

"Call me when you're finished. I'd love to see you for dinner."

With one last kiss, she picked up her bag with last night's clothes in it and slid out of the car. He waited until she walked up her walk and into the house before he pulled away and turned down the street to go back to his home. He pressed the auto dial on his phone. It rang twice before it connected.

"Do I want to know where you've been?" Hel asked.

"You at home?"

"Yep. Arnold left a couple of hours ago, he had to go into work for a couple of hours."

He shook his head. It must be contagious.

"Stay there and fire up the laptops. I need to work."

She was silent for a minute. "That bad?"

"No, that good. I'm scaring myself and I need a distraction."

"Nothing that dismembering several pathetic victims won't cure. I'll put some coffee on, shall I?"

"Hel, you are a life saver."

"Well, it's only fair I start paying you back."


	12. Chapter 12

" _Where are we going?"_

" _Hold your horses Pataki, I said I had this."_

 _It was prom night and Helga, Gerald and Tad, all in prom wear, were currently in Gerald's car driving the complete opposite way of the high school. Helga was in the back seat, leaning forward, her forearms on either side of the two seats in front peering between them._

" _I didn't get all dressed up so I could drive around in your car all night," she grumbled. "I could've done that in jeans and a tee shirt."_

" _You weren't even planning on going to Prom anyway," Gerald pointed out._

" _Hence the jeans and tee shirt comment," she retorted.  
"Just let him do this Hel, it'll be fun." Tad said, patting her hand. She sighed but didn't say anything else instead watching through the window. Eventually the car pulled up to the curb and Gerald turned off the car. Tad peered down the street towards the empty lot with the huge tree in the middle of it. _

" _Mighty Pete?" he asked. Gerald took the keys out and grinned at them._

" _We're having an anti-Prom party. No listen," he insisted when Helga rolled her eyes. "For whatever reason the three of us have decided there was no way in hell any of us were going to Prom. And yet, our parents were insistent that we have the experience." He made finger quotes over the last three words. "We got the duds, we got the extra money, my brother bought me beer because he said every good after Prom needs the alcohol so why not spend Prom the way we want? Getting drunk and celebrating what's important to us. Because it sure as hell isn't anything in that high school gym."_

 _Tad grinned and turned around to look at Helga. "Sound like a great idea. Whatd'ya say?"_

 _She shrugged, slipping off her heels. "I say did he buy any hard liquor?"_

 _Gerald shared Tad's grin and opened his car door. "Let's do this."_

 _The three teens walked the half a block down to Mighty Pete. The tall oak tree still stood in its spot, the rope ladder hanging down from the treehouse.  
"That ladder looks new," Tad remarked as they approached the tree.  
"It is. I've had this idea for a while now, just didn't know where to have it where all of us would feel comfortable. I fixed up the treehouse a couple of days ago, got a new ladder, already stocked the fridge, jerry rigged the electricity, we're good for the entire night." He held the ladder and motioned towards Helga. "Ladies first."_

 _She grabbed ahold of the ladder, gathered part of her dress in her hand and put one bare foot on the first rung. She climbed up the ladder and reached the top, looking down._

" _Next."_

 _Tad went second followed by Gerald who pulled up the rope ladder once he was in the house. Helga was sitting in front of one of the open areas, looking out over the almost empty streets. "I remember this being much bigger."_

" _We were also nine." Gerald said as he half crawled into the back room. "Not enough room for a six-foot guy but it's still big enough for our purposes."_

" _Big enough to get an armchair into, as well as some other chairs." Tad said, plopping into a beanbag._

 _Helga glanced back at them. "And pillows and blankets. Enough for a makeshift bed."_

" _Not that anyone would ever sleep in here." Tad added. "But damn, this is a great idea for privacy."_

 _Gerald and Helga shared a knowing look as he dug into a bag he's brought with him._

" _I brought food also. I picked up Slaussen's on the way over. It's not twice baked potatoes and asparagus."_

" _Nope, it's better." Tad said, happily picking up one of the burgers and fries. Helga half crawled towards the two men, taking a seat in one of the extra deck chairs and getting her own food._

" _Thanks for dinner Geraldo."_

 _He shrugged as he opened his own burger. "Eh, it's the least I could do."_

 _The night wore on and the beer was pulled out and drunk, the three laughing uproariously over Tad's interpretation of the incident at the Holiday recital he was forced to go to._

" _So the entire acapella group just falls off of the back risers. The girl on the right tried to keep her balance and grabbed ahold of the curtain."_

 _Helga is doubled over, her skirt hiked up to her knees, laughing hysterically, tears dripping down her face. Gerald has fallen back on the beanbag he was sitting on, his hands clamped over his stomach, laughing. Tad's hand wildly waving about his head as he spoke._

" _Of course the curtain didn't hold and the entire thing comes down landing on the remaining singers who are running in every direction like ants and it doesn't matter because the curtain hit almost every single one of them, covering them in heavy green velour."_

" _Stop!" Helga gasped. "Can't breathe."_

" _No, wait, it gets better."_

" _Ahoy up there!"_

 _The three stop laughing, looking at each other._

" _Did you tell anyone we were coming here?" Tad half whispered. Gerald shook his head._

" _I don't think so. Who is it?"_

 _Tad shrugged and half crawled towards the edge to peek over. Gerald and Helga stayed where they were, watching with baited breath._

" _I see you Tad. Drop the gangplank." Another voice, female this time, said. Tad smirked.  
"No habla Español!" he yelled down._

" _Good, because we aren't speaking Spanish."_

" _Who is it?" Gerald hissed._

 _Tad glanced back at them. "Eugene and Sheena." He glanced back down over the edge of the railing. "Hold on, I have to ask the Captain."_

" _Tell him we brought a bounty with us!"_

 _He looked back. "What do you say Captain?"_

" _What did they bring?"_

 _Tad peeked back over. "Send us the booty first."_

 _A female laugh came from below them. "Figures Tad would want to see the booty first."_

" _Drop the bucket."_

 _Tad looked back at Gerald. "Do we still have the bucket?"_

" _Of course we still have the bucket." Gerald half crawled towards the bucket sitting on the other side of the tree house and lowered it down. A tug on the rope was signal for him to pull it up. Helga half crawled towards them as the bucket came back up to the tree house holding several bottles of alcohol._

" _Sweet, someone got the good stuff." She leaned over the edge. "Look out below!" she yelled before kicking the rope ladder. Tad moved towards the top of the ladder and held out his hand to Sheena who was climbing up the ladder with her shoes in one hand. She grabbed his hand and let him help her to the top. Throwing her shoes to the side, she turns around and held out her arm for Eugene who was climbing up after her._

" _I swear, if you topple this entire tree…" Gerald joked.  
"Ha, ha." The redhead deadpanned, brushing off his pant legs once he got up. Helga pulled up the ladder after them. _

" _So, how'd you find us?"_

 _Process of elimination," Sheena said as they all made their way towards the back of the treehouse. "I knew none of you were coming to Prom but I figured you'd have some sort of celebration of life somewhere important. After that it was just marking out places."_

" _We went to Gerald's field first." Eugene said, pulling out one of the bottles and the sleeve of red solo cups that had come up with the bottles._

" _I thought about that but I figured if we were illegally drinking, we'd get busted there a hell of a lot easier than here."_

" _So, did we miss anything fun?" Tad asked, taking the can Helga handed to him._

" _Dry food, boring speeches, the music was interesting though." Eugene said taking a drink from his cup._

" _You're just pissed because you had to take a girl to Prom." Sheena teased.  
"Sweetie, I've told you, I will proudly take you anywhere." He retorted. She nudged her arm against his and grinned. _

" _Are we using names or not?" she asked._

 _Tad shrugged. "Depends on who we're naming."_

 _Helga wrinkled her nose and reached for one of the bottles and a cup._

" _Your girlfriend won Prom Queen,"_

 _Tad shrugged. "Not surprised."_

" _What's surprising is who won Prom King." Eugene added, glancing towards Helga. Sheena grinned.  
"And who's girlfriend was pissed beyond words. Like I'm surprised there wasn't a punchbowl thrown."_

 _Gerald laughed, draining his can and reaching for another. "Tell me you got pictures."_

" _You know I got pictures." Eugene stated proudly, pulling out his cell phone and scooting towards Gerald._

 _Another voice came from below as Gerald and Eugene were snickering over pictures. "You guys still up there?"_

" _We might have told Patty and Harold where we were going," Sheena mentioned. Tad looked at Gerald who waved his hand._

" _As long as they brought an entry fee."_

 _Tad leaned over the railing. "Did you bring an entry fee?"_

 _On the ground, Harold snorted in derision, tie undone, tux jacket off. Patty leaned against him, wearing his tux jacket._

" _Of course we have an entry fee, I'm not a complete barbarian. Drop the damn ladder."_

 _Tad tossed down the ladder and helped Patty up into the treehouse followed by the case of beer Harold brought and finally Harold. He pulled the ladder up behind him._

" _You tell anyone else?" Gerald called from the back of the treehouse._

" _Who else am I gonna tell?" Harold shot back. "Everybody I like is in this treehouse and the ones who aren't are going to some fancy after party at some hotel. Or getting laid."_

" _Um…" Gerald waved between Patty and Harold. Patty stuck her tongue out at him and sat down next to Helga who offered her a cup full of clear alcohol._

" _Friends are more important. Especially tonight."_

" _Besides, I can get laid any night." Harold added. Eugene spit out his drink and Sheena laughed._

" _Dude TMI!" Tad yelled._

" _Whatever." Harold popped the tab on a beer and lifted it up. "A toast. To friends that are family. The ones who can't be here with us and the ones who won't be here with us."_

 _The other six raised their cup or can in a silent cheer._

* * *

One of the bonuses of being a Senior was getting to be a volunteer in the form of office staff one hour every day. It worked towards school credit plus it looked good on her college applications. The bonus was she got to work with her favorite staff members.

Ms. Harris was one of those. The librarian was Daphne's favorite teacher. The woman was almost as old as her parents and had never married. Her love of books was a well-known fact as was that she ruled the library with a firm yet fair hand. What Daphne knew was that the woman had a quick, dry wit and a wicked, sarcastic sense of humor.

Daphne was walking down the empty main hallway of the school, her arms full of books she was transferring back from the main office back to the library.

Banners adorned the hallways, announcing the Homecoming dance next week as well as campaigns for Homecoming King and Queen nominees.

She passed the glassed-in trophy case in the main hall that usually housed pictured of the famous alumni. Over the past three years, Daphne had walked past this display on her way to and from classes so many times, never once glancing its way.

Today she slowed down to look at it, the thought that maybe Hel and Tad's name or ever a picture of them would be in it, after all, they did create the most famous teen show of this decade.

The case had a couple of pictures of famous people; one of a famous Broadway actor, a famous sports star, a memorial of a soldier who'd graduated when she was a Freshman and had been KIA this past year.

On the bottom shelf was a photo with flowers laying in front of it and a tassel with the numbers "05" on it. Behind that was a small collage of photos.

She peered down to get a better look, curiosity prompting her. The largest photo where the flowers were was a Senior photo of an Asian teen, wire rimmed glasses stuck low on her nose, her black hair brushing a little past her shoulder. There was an engraving on the bottom of the photo.

 **Phoebe Heyerdahl**

 **Class of 2005**

 **Taken too soon**

Daphne stared at the small memorial in stunned silence. After the Homecoming episode aired, she'd talked with her father regarding Phoebe but life and everything else that happened soon after, pushed away any thoughts of sitting down with her father to look at old pictures. But here she was, in a forgotten memorial that was passed by hundreds of students on the daily, none of them even having any idea who the teen was.

She looked at the photos on the small collage just behind the bigger photo, her eyes widening as she recognized a couple of the photos. One was the same photo she'd shown Rebecca, Ariel and Lana over a year ago. There was a photo with Phoebe and who she recognized as Gerald standing together in nice clothing, the background looking like a Spring formal. Another photo showed Phoebe with a group of students in lab coats, another of Phoebe in the library with a blond teen girl and a dark haired teen boy with glasses. She recognized them as a younger Hel and Tad. The final photo was one of Phoebe and Helga making faces towards the camera on a set of bleachers. From the photo it was easy to tell that the girls were best friends.

She didn't know how long she stood there, staring at the small memorial, her mind racing at the unfairness that everyone save a select few had forgotten her.

A hand touched her shoulder and she turned, belatedly realizing she had tears in her eyes. Ms. Harris stood behind her, her eyes on the memorial.

"I was wondering if your father would ever tell you her story." She said. Daphne swiped at her eyes.

"Did you know her?"

The librarian nodded. She pointed towards the picture on the collage of the group of students in lab coats.

"Do you see the small girl in the back of the photo? That's me. I was a Sophomore when Phoebe was a Senior. When a person dies, people talk about how much of an impact that person made on the community or how they'll be missed. But, I can tell you Phoebe Heyerdahl made an impact on many of the students during her time here. Me included. The underclassmen in the Science Club all looked up to her. She was brilliant, God was she smart. And patient, that girl had the patience of a saint. Had to, considering who her best friend was. I was devastated when she died."

"I don't know much about her. My Dad and Uncle Gerald never talked about her in front of me. None of us really knew about her until recently."

Ms. Harris took some of the books from her hands and tilted her head towards the far hallway.

"Come with me, I want to show you something."

As they walked, the librarian continued talking.

"I'm not surprised you don't know about her. After it happened, Gerald never talked about it. I was on the committee to do the memorial for their Graduation so I was there, I'm not sure Gerald even looked up once when they talked about her. I know her best friend didn't. I didn't really know her best friend, mostly by rumor and the one or two times she stopped by to pick her up, but that year, it was hard to say who grieved more for Phoebe; Gerald or Helga."

They entered the empty library and Ms. Harris deposited the books onto the circulation table and continued walking towards the back. Daphne followed suit. She walked into a small room where Ms. Harris was pulling old VCR tapes from a file.

"The school really needs to hire someone to transfers these to digital format for historical purposes." She muttered, pulling out two tapes. "Here. The memorial tape showed at Graduation and the Class Memories tape. I know for a fact that Phoebe is on both of them." She held them out towards Daphne. "That is, if you wanted to watch them."

"Yes!" She took the tapes from Ms. Harris.

"You can use the media area over there. I'll bring you some tissue because, not to toot my own horn, it made people cry."

"Thanks. Ms. H?"

The librarian turned back.

"Did…did anyone else die that year?"

"The final year of the Class of 2005 was especially bad. First there was Phoebe and that spring a kid by the name of Sid Gandolfini died of an overdose. Around the same time a male student had a psychotic break in the middle of Physics and his girlfriend was found in the second floor bathroom about two weeks later, passed out from malnourishment. Like I said, that Senior year was bad for all of them."

She walked away and Daphne turned back to the old TV/VCR combo. It'd been true, all of it. Everyone who'd died or left during the last Season were mirrored off of actual people who'd gone to school here. People, if the show was still right, her parents and the parents and family members of her friends knew.

The tape turned on, a couple of wavy lines distorting the picture until it came in clear. Daphne put on the headphones and watched a teen girl who, by all rights, should've been Lyss' Aunt.

The hour was almost over when Ms. Harris came back to check on her. Daphne had a notebook out in front of her and was writing information into it.

"There's only about five minutes' left before class change."

She pulled the headphones off and pushed stop on the tape.

"Thanks Ms. H. And thank you so much for letting me watch these. I feel like I've missed a huge part of my family's life."

"I know you, Veronica, Isabella and Alyssa are close and that your families probably have to be close also. But I'm not sure how much the tapes could have answered."

"More than you know, Ms. H." She gathered her notebook and stood up. "I'll reshelf those tomorrow."

"No need, I'll take care of it. See you tomorrow Daphne."

"Later Ms. H."

She picked up her book bag on the way out of the library and headed towards her next class. She was going to have to do some more research tonight by way of finding her Dad's yearbooks.

* * *

"Court asked me to the homecoming dance," Alyssa put her tray down and handed Ronnie her water and salad. Ronnie frowned as she took the items.

"I thought the last time you guys broke up you said it would be a cold day in hell before you went out with him again."

"Well, fall is coming." Isabella joked, twisting the lid of her soda. Alyssa gave both of her friends a dirty look.

"Funny. We're not dating, it's just a dance."

"Before that it was just a movie." Ronnie reminded her.

"It's almost like you don't want me to go to the dance."

"We do Lyss, we just don't want you walking blindly into the same situation you've walked blindly into the last three times." Isabella countered. Alyssa shrugged, popping a fry into her mouth.

"What about you? Are you going with Xander? And speaking of Xander, you've been suspiciously quiet about this whole affair."

"There's an affair?" Ronnie asked, mid-bite.

"Figure of speech. And there's nothing to tell. We're dating. I'm not going to go into detail about every single little kiss."

Ronnie shoved lettuce into her mouth to keep from laughing at Alyssa's scandalized look. "Isabella! I am hurt you are not sharing every juicy detail with your besties so we can live vicariously through you!"

"To be truthful, I'm not that hurt." Ronnie said, her mouth still full of lettuce.

"That's gross Ron, knock it off. And this is exactly the reason why I didn't tell you." She snagged Alyssa's phone from her hand. "You're tweeting about how hurt you are that I don't share details with you."

Alyssa protested as Isabella erased the tweet and handed her phone back to her.

"Baby!" She cradled her phone, her lower lip sticking out in a pout.

"Quit live tweeting our conversations and maybe I could be persuaded to give you details."

"Wait, are you giving Ronnie and Daphne details?"

Ronnie shook her head, her mouth full again. Daphne looked up from her notebook.

"I heard my name, what do I know?"

"No. If I haven't told you, I'm not telling them. You know the rules; if we're not telling all, we're not telling anyone."

"You are so frustrating."

"And you love me."

Daphne looked around the table. "What's going on?"

"Izzy's going to the dance with Xander and Court asked Lyss to the dance." Ronnie took a drink of water. Daphne looked at Alyssa frowning.

"Lyss. You told us to remind you what a bad idea it was in case you did this again."

Isabella waved a hand towards Daphne as if to say _See?_ Alyssa rolled her eyes and bit into another fry.

"What are you doing over there that's got your attention anyway?" she asked.

"Oh um…" she looked down at the notebook half full with notes, copies of newspaper clippings and old school photos. "It's a project for Ms. H. I'm working on something for Homecoming week."  
"What kind of project?"

Daphne looked around the table at her friends debating what to tell them that was as close to the truth without spilling the actual truth.

"Um…an old student of the school died around Homecoming and a milestone anniversary is coming up soon. I told Ms. H I'd help research some things."

"That's just depressing." Alyssa bit into another fry. "That's just a downer for Homecoming week."

"I think it's nice they want to remember the anniversary." Isabella said.

"As long as it's not this year." Alyssa added. Daphne shook her head, closing the notebook. She'd work on it a little more at home tonight.

"No. It's next year."

"So, what color dress should I get?" Alyssa asked changing the subject. "Izzy, what color are you getting?"

Daphne hid a grin as Ronnie shoved another forkful of salad into her mouth to keep from saying anything and then pulled out her phone and read a message, her full cheeks lifting in a smile.

"No wonder you don't have a date to Homecoming if that's how you eat, loser."

All four girls stopped their conversation to look at the blonde standing beside their table, her two friends behind her. Isabella raised an eyebrow but Alyssa beat her to the punch.  
"Nice skirt Dallas, wasn't that last season's failure?"

The blond sneered. "Like you'd know anything about fashion, Alyssa."

The teen gave her a look. "You saying black girls don't know anything about fashion? Because Beyoncé begs to differ."

"Don't twist my words, Parrish."

"Then quit saying asinine things, Dallas."

"You need to walk away Dallas," Isabella warned. "Or I'm going to move you along."

The blond looked at the girls and huffed, rolling her eyes. "I don't know why you waste your time on this loser, it's so pathetic to think that her dad is so hot and rich and she got none of it."

Isabella was up out of her seat in an instant, Alyssa and Daphne close behind.

"You have less than two seconds to walk away," Isabella warned.

"Because the first thing I'm going for is your fake ass nails and that bad hairstyle." Alyssa added. Daphne glared, a hand laying protectively on Ronnie's shoulder.

"And I don't think your friends are going to jump in to help you."

Dallas looked at the three girls and tossed her hair back. "Whatever, I'm not getting in trouble for your cheap knockoff friend." She stormed off, her two friends following occasionally glancing back nervously. Daphne sat down, her hand not leaving Ronnie's shoulder as three of the girls shared a look.

"I thought we were going to get into a fight for a minute there," Alyssa said, laughing nervously. Isabella grinned at her.

"What, were you going to get Ronnie to hold your ponytail while you jumped her?"

"I'll have you know this is natural, keep talking crap about my hair, Berman."

Isabella laughed, shaking her head. "I always knew underneath all that tweeting and selfies you were a BAMF."

"Way underneath," Daphne teased ducking a fry Alyssa half-heartedly threw her way.

"Hey, don't listen to her." Isabella said, her hand clasping Ronnie's other shoulder. The girl gave a halfhearted shrug.

"Kind of hard not to when she's just repeating things my Dad used to say."

"Girl, screw your Dad," Alyssa glanced at the other two girls. "Not really, but forget him. He's an idiot who doesn't know a good thing If it came up and bit him in his pampered ass. You are a thousand times the Montague your dad is. Take away his money and fancy crap and he's just a sad forty-year-old man playing at seventeen."

"What Lyss said." Daphne agreed. Isabella gave a look.

"However weird it might be to say that."

"The point is," Daphne continued, hiding a smirk at the face Alyssa made to Isabella's back. "You are not a loser nor are you a knockoff of your dad. You are so much more than that and people like Dallas are just annoyed that you're intelligent instead of shallow and vapid like them."

Ronnie gave a small smile. "Thanks."

"I can't believe I'm saying this but get on snapchat or-

"You can't believe you're saying that?" Isabella interrupted.

"As I was saying…get on the snapchat or messenger or whatever social forum you have that group you're always texting in and tell them. They always seem to make you feel better and I'm sure they'd tell you the same thing your three best friends are telling you; that you're way awesome."

Ronnie's smile grew. "Thanks Lyss. I love you too."

"Good. Now. Dress color, I need ideas girls!"

* * *

"You ready to go?"

Aggie slid on her sweater, carefully walking towards her son.

"Ahahahah!'

She stopped and he pointed to the walker unfolded by the couch.

"Use the walker, woman."

"The walker makes me feel old."

"Better old than another broken hip."

She sighed dramatically and pulled the walker towards her.

"Happy?  
"Ecstatic. So much that I might even get you fig newtons." He opened the door, letting her move out first.

"Don't tease me Thaddeus."

"Never about fig newtons, Mother."

He locked the door and hurried beside her to help her slowly make her way down the stairs. She moved carefully and with each step Tad's anxiety increased. She was getting along around the apartment, moving with relative ease. But stairs were his new bane. He tried not to hover, but he wanted to make sure he was close enough to catch her is she stumbled.

It took a while but she made it down the stairs without incident. He opened the outside door and helped her out into the crisp fall afternoon.

"Are we taking the convertible?" she asked brightly.

"It has bucket seats, no, we're taking the Sonata."

"The Sonata is boring," she pouted as they walked towards the navy blue car.

"The Sonata is easy for you to get in and out of," He clicked the key fob to unlock the doors. "In you go."

He waited as she slowly climbed into the car.

"Doing okay?"

"I'm not broken Tad."

Shutting the door, he rolled his eyes as he crossed to the driver's side.

She was silent as they drove to the office, her hand on the folded up walker drumming her fingers over it.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, why do you ask?"

"Because you're playing the drums on the walker. You fidget when you're nervous Mom."

She was silent for a moment. "What if I'm not healed enough?' She finally asked. "What if the doctor looks at me and says I need to stay off my feet for another month? You're heading back to LA in a week or so, I can't ask you to stay out here."

"Mom." He turned the corner to get onto the main road. "First, the doctor isn't going to make you go back on bed rest for another month. They have hip surgery patients walking out of the hospital forty-eight hours after they come in. He might put you on limited walking but he won't put you back in bed. They want you moving."

"I'll go crazy if I have to stay in bed any longer."

"Too late, you've already snapped and taken me with you."

Aggie looked out the window, her fingers still tapping on the walker sporadically now. "I love the fall. The leaves changing colors, the cooler weather. The whole town changes in the fall."

"Because the season changed Mom, the town is still the same."

"I know you never liked Hillwood, but for me fall here always makes me think of change. Like a cleansing for a fresh start. Everything just seems new in the fall."

"I'm telling your doctor to change your pain meds. They're making you loopy."

"Thaddeus."

"It's not that I hate Hillwood Mom, I have some good memories here and I made good friends. I've just discovered that I do much better in larger cities. Larger metropolitan areas where one can get lost and still make a name for themselves."

"You were always more far reaching then your father or I."

He smiled absently and focused on driving to the medical building. He hated disappointing his parents, but his mom was right; he and Hillwood were not friends. He had a limited amount of fond thought regarding this town. If it weren't for his parents still living and working here, he'd have happily been just like Hel; never coming back. The Rhonda thing was nice, but he was not foolish enough to believe that it would ever go anywhere. She was where she wanted to be, the long ago Prom Queen living in the town who worshipped her, a town that still thought of her parents as influential citizens of the community. Not that any of that was bad, it's not what he wanted in his life, he had always been destined for bigger and better things; living in a small town working a nine to five job and hating his existence was not it.

He'd never thought he'd get as far as he had with the woman he loved so long ago, for them to be seeing each other, even for this small time, exceeded even his wildest dreams. But he understood it had an expiration date. He wasn't moving back to Hillwood and she wasn't moving to LA. Unlike Hel and Arnold, this romance was not going to have a happily ever after, because the tagline was true, wasn't it? Not all stories have happy endings. And he was fine with that. Better to enjoy the time he had than to regret never having it.

He pulled into the parking lot of the medical building and stopped the car. His mother was already trying to push the car door open.

"Dammit, woman! Can you wait for just one minute?"

* * *

Two hours later, they pulled up in front of the families cleaning service. Tad hurried to the other side of the car as his father walked out of the building.

"How did the appointment go?"

"I'm free!" Aggie cheered.

"Not quite," Tad amended. "The Doc said Mom can start walking around more and doing light duties back at the business. But he still wants someone watching over her in the mornings when she's at her weakest, so I can come over in the mornings until her joints get warmed up. After that, she's your problem."

Ken laughed. "Let's start that tomorrow then. I only have three more hours before the shop closes and then we can discuss our options."

"Deal, come on Mother," Tad said, bag in one hand, his other on his mother's back, guiding her towards the door to the upstairs apartment. "Let's get you upstairs and I'll let you tear into one box of fig newtons."

* * *

"We've hit the halfway point."

Helga looked up from her laptop as he turned the corner into the dining room.

"We've done what?"

He tossed the keys onto the table and walked past her to the kitchen.  
"Took Mom to the doctor today. He said she's pretty much healed." He walked out with a beer and sat down at the table across from her. "Only have to stay with her in the mornings for about another week and then the doc said she's pretty much good to go on her own. She still has to take it easy but she doesn't need constant babysitting anymore. One of the casts came off today, the crack in her pelvis is almost healed and her hip is looking good. She's got a boot for her foot now and she still has to use the walker but Aggie Gumblethorpe is mobile and allowed to go back to work, God have mercy on all of Hillwood."

Helga chuckled. "I'm sure she's thrilled."

"She's more than thrilled, she'd counting the hours. When I left she was happily eating the second package of fig newtons I got her for being a good girl at the doctor's appointment and already driving my father nuts by constantly talking about what she was going to do tomorrow."

"What are we going to do with the rest of our time here?"

"I'd be okay with skipping out early but as I know you're wanting pretty much every minute you can get with your Prince Charming," He ducked the bottle cap thrown his way. "We can stay the last week or so. At least until we can get everything wrapped up here."

"Sounds like a plan. Now, while you've been playing nursemaid with your mother, I've finished up a rough draft for the Hallow'een episode of Urban Legends."

The bottle stopped halfway to his mouth. Slowly he lowered it. "How in the hell did you do that? You've been spending the majority of your time with Arnold?"

She shrugged, a small smirk playing on the edge of her mouth. "Just inspired, I guess."


	13. Chapter 13

**AN:** First, please excuse the potentially bad Japanese. I used a translator. Also, there might be a potential trigger warning for mental health issues. I tried to be as accurate as I could. Hopefully it comes out smoothly as part of the plot and not ableist at all.

* * *

" _Why do you let her do this to you?"_

 _Helga, Phoebe and Tad were all in Phoebe's bedroom doing homework. Per rules, Phoebe's door was left open whenever Tad was present. That never stopped them from talking about almost everything, however._

" _I'm not letting her do anything." Helga insisted. "She asked me to back off a bit, to let him choose."_

" _Why does he have to choose?" Tad asked. He was sitting at Phoebe's desk drawing on a sketch pad. "Gerald and Phoebe are dating and you and Gerald are still their friends."  
"I don't like Gerald like that, no offence Phoebs,"_

" _None taken," she chirped, positioning herself on her bed and pulling out one of her combs. She tugged Helga's ribbon off and began combing the girl's hair._

" _And unless Gerald had suddenly realized that he's not one hundred percent straight, his friendship with Arnold isn't a threat," Helga continued._

" _What Tad is trying to say rather badly-"_

" _Hey!"_

" _Is that Arnold and Lila have been in a serious relationship for three years. And for all three of those years she has not once said anything about Arnold and your friendship. She hasn't made a peep when Arnold has called you one of his best friends. He has never done anything inappropriate with you in that time-"_

" _That we know of and we're trusting that you would tell us if he had, Athena," Tad interrupted again._

" _So why is she suddenly so insistent that he choose?"_

 _Tad dropped his pencil and waved his hand in the air insistently. "Oh! I know this one! I'll take jealousy for $500, Alex."_

 _Helga was leaning half against the bed and half against Phoebe as the smaller teen combed her hair and began separating pieces. "What is there to be jealous of? I mean, yeah, I might feel a little more than friendship for Arnold-"_

" _Bullshit," Tad coughed loudly._

" _But I would never act upon it. As far as I'm concerned, he's off limits." She continued with a glare towards Tad. "And no, nothing has ever happened. Maybe there might have been a thought or two but it never went past that, because he's off limits."_

" _Watashitachiha tsutaeru koto ga dekimasu sono baka baita zurakarimasu?" Phoebe grumbled under her breath. Tad grinned widely._

" _Doll face, I'm not sure what you just said, but I love it when you speak Japanese because it usually means you're pissed."_

" _Pulling hair Phoebs," Helga grimaces when Phoebe tugged too hard on her hair._

" _Sorry Helga." She loosened her grip and continued French braiding._

" _I understood idiot and, I think, fuck off."_

" _Well that's just hot. You talk to Gerald with that mouth?"_

" _Never you mind what I do to Gerald with my mouth," she shot back, blushing when she realized how it sounded. Tad was already laughing, doubled over in the chair._

" _TMI Phoebe, TMI!" Helga called out laughing when Phoebe gave another light tug on her hair._

" _The point is," Phoebe said, trying desperately to move the subject back to its original path. "That Lila has nothing to do with your friendship with Arnold. She's jealous and as much as you refuse to see it, she'd like nothing more than to get you out of his life for good. Do not give her that satisfaction."_

" _Lila wouldn't do that. I can understand why she's wary. I'd be too if my boyfriend was always around another woman."_

" _Why don't you let Arnold decide what he wants?" Tad asked as Phoebe wrapped the ribbon around the finished braid. Helga shook her head._

" _No. I don't want Arnold knowing that she came to me with this. I don't want him upset in any way by this. I'll take care of it."_

 _Phoebe and Tad shared a look over Helga's head._

" _Helga, we love you and we don't want to see you get hurt."_

" _Frankly, if it was between you or Lila getting hurt, we could all give two craps about Lila."_

" _Thank you guys but I can handle this. I'll just back off a little bit and see how it goes. It'll be fine."_

* * *

"I texted my mom after lunch and now she's insisting on taking me dress shopping tonight." Isabella muttered leaning against the locker next to Alyssa's. Alyssa shut the locker, giving a grin to her friend.

"Lucky, I have to wait until this weekend. I have too much homework tonight anyway. What are you going to get?"

Isabella shrugged as they started walking down the hall to meet with their other two friends. "I don't know. Not a clue. I hardly wear anything except pants and sportswear, how am I supposed to be expected to figure out what kind of dress I'm supposed to get?"

"Go for something in green." Daphne suggested as she and Ronnie met them in the corner of one of the hallways. "Green would go great with your eyes."

"Why you looking at my eyes, Shortman?"

Daphne laughed and batted her eyelashes. "You got me, they're just so mesmerizing."

"What are you doing tonight?" Alyssa asked as the four headed for the exit.

"Going home, doing more research for this project for Ms. H. Probably eating dinner with Dad and Hel."

"Has it stopped being weird yet?" Alyssa asked.

"It stopped being weird two days after I found her at the house. Now…it's just…"

"Oh my God!"

The three teens looked at Ronnie who was now showing her phone to them.

"They're…look!"

On the phone was the Snapchat app with a small video showing two people that looked like Allen Adams and Anne Cummings in a car talking and showing scenes of where they were driving. In one clip, the image of the boardwalk was visible. Alyssa grabbed Ronnie's hand, pulling the phone closer to her face.

"Was that the pier?"

Ronnie's phone buzzed and they all crowded around her, privacy forgotten as they read the text over Ronnie's shoulder.

 **Are you still here gumdrop? Because we did not just drive cross country to miss you at school!**

Alyssa screeched, startling two teens that were walking past her.

"Is that…does that mean what I think it means?"

Ronnie started walking quickly towards the exit. Daphne grabbed Alyssa and Isabella's arms and tugged them after her as she ran to follow Ronnie.

The dark haired teen pushed open the doors and pushed past two blondes standing by the exit. The one turned and glared at her.

"Watch where you're going loser!" Dallas snarled.

"Not now!" Ronnie shot back, scanning the parking lot. Dallas straightened and reached out to grab Ronnie's arm when the doors opened again and Daphne, Alyssa and Isabella rushed out.

"Don't even think about it Dallas," Isabella called out.

"Screw you Berman, this little bitch about ran me over. I'm going to…"

Ronnie laughing and waving caught everyone's attention and they all looked towards where she was waving. Walking across the parking lot were a guy and a woman, both with black hair. Alyssa screamed again, her eyes wide.

"Holy shit, she was telling the truth!"

The blond with Dallas' eyes widened. "That looks like Allen Adams."

Daphne pushed past them, pulling her two friends along as Ronnie raced towards the two. "Because it is Allen Adams."

On cue, the guy quickened his steps, meeting Ronnie in a perfectly choreographed move worthy of the show he'd been on. He scooped her up, twirling her around.

"Gumdrop! I've missed you!" he announced loudly. Ronnie's laughter was heard as the three finally caught up with them. Anne, who had finally caught up also, flashed a smile towards Daphne.

"Hey Daph, nice town you got here. Looks familiar."

"Hey Anne, Ronnie's been keeping secrets."

"No, this one was on us. I told her I was escaping Hollywood; I just didn't tell her where."

Allen had put Ronnie down and was heading towards Daphne. "Daphne,"

Chuckling, she accepted the quick hug from Allen. "Hey Allen."

"Are you surprised?"

"I'd say everyone is." She glanced back to her other two best friends who were staring in shock at the two actors form their favorite ex-television show. "Allen, Anne, this is Izzy and Lyss."

"Ladies," Allen made a show of bowing and kissing each of their hands. "I'm honored."

Isabella slapped a hand over her mouth and Alyssa leaned against her. "I'm dreaming."

"Okay, so what happened?" Ronnie asked. "You said beaches with guys bringing you fruity drinks."

"What, you don't have beaches here?" Anne countered.

"It's fall Anne. And there aren't guys brining anyone fruity drinks."

"Um guys…" Daphne eyed the growing crowd beginning to gather. "We should take this somewhere else?"

Anne looked around and waved at some of the students. "Good idea. We can do publicity later. I'm not sure your Principal is going to be thrilled if we start a riot on campus."

"I'm not sure Hel and Tad are going to be trilled if you start a riot on campus."

Anne winced. "Come on, let's get back to the car. Allen, get the goods!"

"All of us?" Alyssa finally piped up. Anne grinned at her.

"Ah, she does speak! Yeah, all of you. You're Ronnie and Daphne's best friends right? You get to go."

Ronnie screeched in laughter as Allen scooped her up. "Let's go."

Daphne tugged once more on Isabella and Alyssa's arms to get them to move. Isabella glance behind her to see Dallas watching the proceedings in shock.

"Hey Ronnie, your karma just got served."

Ronnie was laughing too hard to hear her, but Daphne grinned at the comment.

"Tomorrow is going to be really interesting."

The six hurried towards the parking lot and the rental car.

"Everyone might have to squeeze in." Anne said as she opened the door.

"We'll figure it out." Daphne said. Allen dropped Ronnie to her feet and opened his door with a flourish. Daphne, Isabella and Alyssa climbed into the backseat.

"Am I dreaming or am I seriously sitting in a car with Anne Cummings and Allen Adams?" she whispered loudly, her voice bordering on astonished hysteria.

"It might be both," Isabella said. "But we are definitely sitting in a car with Theo and Brooke."

"Do you think they'd freak out if I suddenly started screaming in excitement?"

"It's a definite possibility."

"You guys," Daphne said as Allen slid into the passenger seat. "They're just people."

"Speak for yourself Red." He retorted. "Come on gumdrop."

Anne slid into the driver's seat as Ronnie slid onto Allen's lap. "You're going to get me into so much trouble."

"That's the best kind." The grin was evident in his voice as Anne started the car.

Daphne leaned forward in the seat as Anne pulled out of the parking lot. "Okay, what the hell guys?"

"Actually you're the one who said I was getting served fruity drinks by hot guys." Anne said, picking up the conversation from the quad. "I never said anything about that. I just said I was thinking about running away."

"Actually, I think Allen was the one who suggested that," Ronnie countered.

"Getting served fruity drinks by hot guys is not a bad way to go out." Allen's fingers drummed against Ronnie's knee. "But sorry Ronnie, that one was all you."

"Honestly, after that debacle with the movie, I just wanted time off. And I got tired of the private messages, the text messages and the skyping."

"We both did."

"We agreed since Hel and Tad were here, it was kismet. We both missed you, we needed to escape the paparazzi and what better place than freaking here?"

Daphne watched them both nervously. She wasn't sure what they knew regarding Becky's theory; probably enough considering how close everyone on the cast was, but the last thing she needed was one or both of them spilling the beans in the car with everyone around.

"Where to guys?" Anne asked.

"I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I need to go home. I have to go dress shopping with my mom tonight." Isabella said.

"Homecoming is coming, right?" Anne asked. "Ronnie's been grumbling about it for weeks now."

"We can drop you guys off, but" Allen turned to looked back at them, a roguish grin on his face. "We have to go somewhere for dinner later this week. Anne and I need to know all the juicy details about this town and you guys, deal?"

"Deal!" Alyssa all but shouted.

Daphne leaned back against the seat. She could already tell that this was not going to be a boring week.

* * *

"We eat here one more time and I'm going to start calling this our restaurant." Tad teased as they split up the number twelve and the number six again. "The best part is this is all ours. I don't think Hel's found this place yet and we're only here for another week and a half."

Rhonda scooped up some rice, pausing the chopsticks in front of her mouth as she contemplated his statement.

"How is your mom doing?"

"Took her to the doctor's office the other day. He says she's healing great. I'm only staying over there in the morning right now because he wants her walking around. I told him anything that happened to her by giving her that much freedom was firmly on his shoulders. He accepted the mantle calmly enough. She only seems to have problems anymore in the morning after sleeping in one position all night, she tends to be a little stiff and awkward. She's not allowed to drive for another couple of weeks so Dad will have to do the grocery shopping but she's already talking about working part time back at the cleaners. Dad agreed, hence the reason I am lucky enough to be at this incredible restaurant with an amazingly beautiful woman."

She smirked and took a bite of her food. "You are such a smooth talker."

"It's Hollywood darling, you have to learn how to smooth talk rather quickly or you get rolled right over." He winked. "But with you, it's never been hard to tell the truth. And how can I not? You skipped a half day of work for me, I'm flattered."

"Yes, this is becoming rather disconcerting. I have missed way too much work these past couple of days. I need to stop."

"You're right, you should just go to your boss and tell them you need to take a couple of days off. No more calling in and then you won't feel guilty."

Rhonda snickered, taking another bite of the spicy beef. "You are incorrigible."

"No more than I was in high school. We've just grown up goddess." He leaned over the table and lowered his voice. "And I'm perfectly comfortable telling you that you look particularly ravishing in that red skirt and I cannot wait to slowly peel it from your body just to see what surprises you have for me…"

"Rhonda? Skipping work? You?"

The conversation halted and both looked up at the person suddenly standing in front of their table. Rhonda's eyes narrowed.

"Look who's talking about skipping work Lila. Isn't this a little far from your usual hunting grounds?"

The redhead flipped her hair back. "I'm having a lunch meeting."

"Is that what they're calling those now?"

She smirked, eyeing Tad in preparation for a retort. The words died on her lips as she recognized who was sitting across from Rhonda.

"Curly?"

"Tad," he corrected. "Lovely to see you again Lila."

"You are the last person I expected to see here, much less with her?" she looked between the two. "Are you that hard up now Rhonda that you've resorted to sleeping with your old friend zoned idiot?"

"I'm sorry, were you saying something? Because all I see is an old dear friend who happens to be a major power player in Hollywood having lunch with me."

Lila snorted. "Major power player, he and Helga couldn…" she paused and eyed Tad thoughtfully. "Where is your other half? You two don't go anywhere without the ot…"

Her eyes widened and then narrowed. Without a word, she spun on her heels and stormed out of the restaurant, Tad and Rhonda watching her in confusion. They waited until the door shut before Rhonda looked back at Tad.

"That was weird, usually Lila finished her insults until someone else breaks and tells her to go to hell or her date of the week arrives."

"Are we counting this up to a lucky break?" he suggested. She shrugged and leaned towards him.

"Now, you were telling me what you were going to do with this lovely-"

"Son of a bitch!" he yelled, startling her. He raised his hand towards their server. She sat back, frowning.

"What is it? Tad?"

"She's going to Arnold's. She saw me and realized that Hel was here too."

"So?"

"You aren't the only one playing hooky from work today."

Her eyes widened. "Shit! We have to get there before she does. I need to warn him."

She pulled out her phone and dialed Arnold's number while Tad took care of the bill. The line went straight to voicemail. She kept trying as he helped her out of her seat and hurried her towards his car.

"Anything?"

"It keeps going to voicemail. I'll keep trying."

"Please. We need to stop by my place quick. There might be something I'm going to need, just in case."

He pulled out of the parking space and sped down the road towards the house he and Hel were renting.

* * *

One of the many things she and Tad had in common were their beliefs in love and relationships. It was one of the reasons their tagline on Ever After was what it was. Fairy tale endings were a myth. Happily ever after's rarely happened and if they did, there was a damn large amount of fighting before anyone ever got it and even then, the ever after part was not guaranteed.

Physical attraction, however, was always a given.

Tad was a serial dater. He would date a woman for a time and then move on to the next one. So far he'd only had problems with one of his exes who thought the "I prefer casual relationships" was actually code for "I'm just waiting for the right girl to fall madly in love with".

She, however, preferred her own company. She understood her weaknesses and honestly never had the time or inclination to pursue more than the occasional dalliance.

That was, until now.

She lay back on the pillow gasping for breath, shivering at the warm puffs of breath against her neck from the man half sprawled on her. His face was half buried against her neck and one hand was curved possessively on her right hip.

It was two-thirty on a Thursday afternoon; she really shouldn't be doing this. This was decadence personified and so decidedly not responsible.

She hummed, her train of thought stalling as the hand that was on her hip slid slowly up her side, fingertips brushing against skin and causing nerve endings to re-ignite. She could feel a smile against her neck followed by a soft chuckle.

The face against her neck moved and Arnold looked down at her, his hair messy, that half lidded gaze fully focused on her sending the always familiar warmth to her groin.

"This is decidedly not responsible of you." Her voice was raspy and still breathless. His grin just grew more mischievous.

"I know. I could get used to this." Those fingers were sliding up her arm, raising goosebumps.

"You're supposed to be setting an example."

"Are you complaining?"

She gasped softly as fingertips brushed against her clavicle and up the side of her neck.

"Nope. Not at all."

Still grinning, he lowered his head.

His mouth moved against hers; hot, teasing, persistent.

The sudden banging on the front door interrupted their kiss. He broke the kiss with a frown.

"Nobody knows I'm home."

"Ignore it." She suggested, her hands sliding up his bare chest.

"Good idea,"

The doorbell rang continuously interrupting their kiss again. He growled under his breath and moved off of Helga. She sat up, using the sheet to cover her as he grabbed a pair of jeans and slid into them before he climbed from the bed.

"I don't know who the hell is banging on my door but they're getting a piece of my mind." He growled, as he grabbed a shirt and headed towards his bedroom door. Helga grabbed the nearest piece of clothing next to her, one of his shirts and a pair of sweat pants. She slid them on and hurried out of the room as he heard the beginning of Arnold yelling at someone at the door.

She came down the stairs, stopping almost at the bottom when she spotted Lila in the front entrance of the house yelling at Arnold who was fighting back.

"…of your business what I'm doing at home on a Thursday afternoon!" he yelled. Lila looked up at the stairs and pointed at Helga, her face furious.

"I knew it! I knew you were behind all of this! You couldn't wait to get your claws into him, could you? I bet you were sleeping with him in LA."

Helga frowned, not sure what Lila was talking about. Arnold stepped in front of the staircase, his eyes flashing in anger.

"Get the hell out of my house Lila! You don't have any reason to be here."

She ignored him, her sights set on Helga. Her eyes flashed when she noticed what Helga was wearing.

"You slut! You've been panting after him since we were kids! You think that you can just skip in here and just take over everything now that you think I've been pushed out of the picture, you've got another think coming! Just remember while you're standing there in his clothes looking victorious that I had him first. I was his first everything and Daphne is mine! You, like always, are just getting my castoffs. You're just sad and pathetic and soon he's going to find out just how pathetic you are and decide you aren't worth the grief, just like before!"

"Get the hell out of my house right now before I call the…"

"Kono ama!" Helga screamed, her blue eyes flashing in anger. She flew off the stairs, her fists raised. She reached the main floor and ran towards Lila, intent to hurt her. "I'll kill you!"

Her fist reared back and she swung, barely missing the shocked redhead. Arnold had reached out and grabbed Helga around the waist before she could touch Lila. She was struggling in his arms, fists flying and still screaming profanities.

"Get the hell out of this house!" Arnold yelled at Lila. She pointed at Helga.

"She's crazy! She tried to kill me! You heard her."

"You backstabbing, manipulative bitch, I will pound you into the ground!" Helga screamed, still struggling against Arnold's grasp.

"I swear I'll let her go if you don't get the hell out right now, Lila!"

"I'm calling the police!"

"I dare you! Get out!"

With one last look at Helga, Lila hurried out of the house, the door slamming in her wake. Arnold held onto to Helga until he heard Lila's car start and pull away from the house.

"She's gone, it's okay." He soothed her, his grip around her waist loosening enough that he was only holding her against him. Her screams of rage had morphed into sobs and she crumbled against him.

"She's right," her voice was catching, breathless as her voice was gone in the sudden hysterical sobs. "I'm crazy…I can't…you're going to…"

"Helga, you need to calm down."

Her head whipped from side to side, her fingers digging against his in an effort to pull away. "This was…mistake…I never…should have…I can't…"

She pulled away and raced down the hallway still sobbing. He hurried after her, worried she was going to hurt herself. He turned the corner into the hallway to see the hallway bathroom door slam shut. He hurried towards it, knocking on the door.

"Helga. Let me in, please. Sweetheart, please unlock the door."

He slammed his fist once more against the wood, frustrated. He left the door and ran upstairs to get his phone. There was only one person he could think of right now that could help him.

* * *

Tad was driving as fast as he could towards Arnold's house, Rhonda giving him directions when his phone rang. She picked up the phone and put it on speaker.

"Arnold?"

"Rhonda? Is Tad with you?"

"Right here," Tad answered as he turned left where Rhonda was pointing. "Lila's on her way to your house, I think. Rhon and I were out at lunch and she saw us and…"

"She's already been here. I need your help, Helga's locked herself in the bathroom and I can't through to her."

"Right," Rhonda said. "Third house on the left."

Tad turned the corner. "What happened?"

"Lila started yelling at her and Helga just snapped with an anger I haven't seen since we were in grade school."

"Unlock the door Arnold," Rhonda interrupted. "We're parking in front of your house."

"Got it." The phone disconnected as Tad turned off the engine.

"Looks like you were right, going back to your house to get the medicine." she said as they got out. Arnold could be seen in the open doorway, looking worried.

"I only wish I had been wrong."

"I can't get her to unlock the door." Arnold said as they reached the front door. "I don't know what to do, I don't know how to help her."

"I got this. Rhon?"

"Let's go into the kitchen. You're going to have to call Gerald and let him know what happened."

"Dammit, she said she was going to call the police."

"Did Helga touch her?"

Arnold shook his head as they entered the kitchen, from the hallway, he could hear Tad knocking on the bathroom door.

"No, I grabbed her before she could, but she was furious. I don't blame her, Lila said some really mean things. Some of them, I'm sure, were said just to get a rise out of Helga."

"Just be thankful that your reflexes haven't dulled over the years."

"That's just it. I've never had to grab Helga to keep her from attacking anyone before. I was in shock. I honestly don't know how I reacted so fast." He dialed Gerald's number and waited for the ring.

"Hey. I need you to do me a favor. Lila came over here banging on the door and causing a nuisance until I answered. Helga was here and she…stop, I can hear the smirk in your voice, this is serious. Lila said some things and Helga went at her. No, she didn't touch her, I was able to get her before she did. Anyway, Lila's made noises about calling the police. I'd love to hit her with a restraining order or a nuisance order but she hasn't done enough for me to get either of those. Helga didn't touch her. At all. She screamed and swung and I think she called her a not nice name in Japanese…stop laughing Gerald. But at no time did any part of her touch Lila. Yeah…you can? That would be great. Yeah, thanks Gerald."

He clicked off his cell and glared at Rhonda who was covering a smile with her hand.

"This isn't funny."

"Oh, it's a little funny."

He glanced nervously towards the bathroom door. "I don't know what to do Rhonda. Part of me feels horrible for calling Tad and having him deal with her, but this is new territory for me. And I have a feeling that Tad's dealt with this before."

"Probably, come sit down, I'll get you a water or something." She led him to the kitchen table and pulled two water bottles from the fridge.

"I'm failing at this dating thing."

Rhonda reached over and covered is hand with hers. "No. You're doing fine. How long has it been since you've dated?"

He gave a wry grin. "Probably as long as you."

"See, we both have room to learn."

He twisted the top off of the water bottle and gave another glance back to the closed bathroom door.

"Distract me. How's this not dating thing you're doing with Tad going?"

She gave him a look. The front door opened, distracting them. Arnold was up first, followed by Rhonda. Daphne gave them both a surprised look as they came around the corner.

"Hi. Did you both take off work today? What's going on?"

"Just a little misunderstanding, that's all." Rhonda peered at the open door behind Daphne. "Where's Ronnie?"

"Oh…um…she went out with some friends."

"Friends? Other than you three?"

"Ronnie has other friends. Apparently."

"Daphne…" Arnold warned.

"I can't…Ronnie is out with friends, probably at the local diner. She's perfectly safe, trust me."

Rhonda already had her phone out, texting her daughter.

"In that case, I should probably get home and wait for her." She glanced back at the still closed bathroom door. "Although Tad drove here and my car is still at my house."

"Tad's here?" Daphne asked.

"Daphne, can you give Rhonda a ride home?" Arnold asked, handing over his car keys. "Normally I'd take you home but under the circumstances…"

"Completely understandable. Call me when everything's under control and tell Tad to call me later, would you?" She kissed his cheek and picked up her purse.

"I will. Thank you Rhonda."

"What's going on?" Daphne asked, looking between her father and her best friend's mother. "Why is Tad here? Is Hel here too?"

"You have your secrets Daphne…" Rhonda said as the two left the house. Arnold stood there for a moment before walking back towards the hallway bathroom. Leaning against the wall, he waited.

* * *

Tad knocked on the bathroom door, his head close to the wood.  
"Hel. It's me. Let me in, Athena."

The door unlocked and he opened it just enough to slip in, closing and locking the door behind him. Helga sat on the floor in the corner of the now cramped bathroom, her hair around her face, her knees up to her chin.

"What happened?" he asked, dropping to the floor in front of her.

"I screwed up," her voice was tinged in hysteria, full of tears. "Tad, I screwed up bad. I lost it, went after that bitch, I showed a side of me I swore in high school I never would again. He hates me now; I just know it."

"He doesn't hate you Hel, he's worried about you."

She shook her head, her hair flying around her face. "No. He hates me and he's right to. I hate me, I'm weak and unlovable, why would anyone ever love me. I did it, it's my fault, I closed myself off to everyone and now I don't know how to let him in and he's going to get tired of me soon enough and realize that I'm crazy and he can't handle a crazy girlfriend and he's going to leave me and…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," He stood up and picked up the glass sitting on the sink. He filled it with water and knelt down before her, holding out the glass of water and a pill.

"Take this. You're running too fast and dangerous and you need your brain to slow down. Athena," he warned when she didn't move. Finally, she took the pill and swallowed it, washing it down with the water.

"It's not going to help."

"It's going to help. It always does."

"Not this time. What kind of man is going to stick with a woman who has to take prescribed medication in order to calm down? Or daily medication in order to keep her brain in check?"

"There are plenty of couples who are in stable relationships where one of the partners are bi-polar. Remember what Jennifer said? This isn't a bad thing, you just need the medicine to keep your brain on track, it doesn't make you any less of a person." He reached out to touch her shoulders. "And as for who could love you? Arnold loves you. He called me as soon as he could. He didn't know what to do so he called the one person he knew who would. He loves you Hel. He loves you fearlessly and when you finally explain this to him, he's still going to love you."

"I almost beat up his ex-wife!"

"To be honest, I want to beat up his ex-wife. But you didn't. And while you're in here, he's out there with Rhonda calling Gerald to get on top of anything that Lila might try because he believes in you."

"Rhonda knows too?" Her head fell back onto her knees. "Great, now she thinks I'm crazy too."

"To be fair, Rhonda has always thought you were a little crazy so that's neither here nor there. But she supports Arnold and his decisions and that includes you. Hel, you are brave, and you are strong. You are my Athena, do not let this beat you."

She lifted her head again, her eyes red from crying. "I'm scared Tad. It's all falling down around me and I can't bear it. I'll die if I've gotten this close only to have it all disappear."

"Nothing is going to disappear." He held her hands tightly. "Trust Arnold, he isn't going to leave you. Trust yourself, this is your brain spiraling. Trust me, I will always have your back."

He sat there, watching her as she tried to control her breathing, muttering under her breath mantras that her psychiatrist taught her. Eventually her breathing slowed and he knew the medicine had taken effect, slowing down her overwrought brain and allowing her to sleep. He let go of her hands and stood up, grunted softly as his back popped. He opened the bathroom door. Sitting against the wall on the other side, Arnold looked up.

He climbed to his feet as Tad gestured inside.

"She's sleeping. Do you want me to take her home or…"

"No, I can put her up in my room. If you're okay with that."

Tad smiled. The man really was ridiculously in love with her and one day she'd realize just how much.

"That's fine. I need to stretch my back anyway."

Arnold moved past him into the bathroom and scooped the now sleeping Helga from the floor.

"Don't go anywhere, I'll be right back."

Tad walked into the kitchen as he heard Arnold climbing the stairs. He looked around the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling out a water bottle. He wandered into the living room, looking around the house. This really was a nice house. Not that she would ever leave LA but in another timeline he could see Hel living here with Arnold, making dinner in this kitchen with kids running around the backyard, waiting for Arnold to come home. LA had been a mutual choice, but it was Tad who'd brought it up initially. Hel was just desperate to get out of Hillwood, to leave her nightmares and failures behind her. She didn't care where they went so long as it was far away from this town. For her LA meant a fresh start. Neither of them ever expected to make it as big as they did.

He turned as he heard footsteps on the stairs. Arnold reached the main floor and spotted Tad in the living room. He jerked his head towards the kitchen and Tad followed.

"Where's Rhon?"

"Daphne took her home; she wasn't sure how long you'd be. I'm at a loss here," he said, sitting down at the kitchen table and picking up his discarded water bottle. "Help me out here please."

"I need your word that what we talk about doesn't go beyond us." Tad started. "And Rhon, because I'm going to have to explain this to her now."

"She asked that you call her later," he said. "And I promise. Now, what's going on?"

Tad dug into his pocket and put the pill bottle onto the table between them. "Back in high school, our Junior year, Hel was finally diagnosed with a mild form of with what was then called manic-depressive disorder. Her psychiatrist prescribed her a daily pill that just keeps her thoughts on track and another one," he nodded towards the bottle on the table. "In cases when something big happened and the daily pills couldn't keep up with the spiraling thoughts suddenly in her brain."

Arnold picked up the pill bottle and looked at it. "Xanax. This is usually prescribed for anxiety."

"Which is what you saw. Hel having an anxiety attack."

He looked back up at Tad. "You said what was then called manic-depressive disorder. What's it called now?"

"Bi-polar disorder."

He waited to see what Arnold would do. If Hel was right and he would freak out, deciding right then and there that he couldn't handle someone with that type of diagnosis. Bi-polar disorder had a bad reputation, the type of people depicted were the ones who had a severe form of the disease and were never compliant on their medication.

Arnold stared at the pill bottle silently for a moment.

"Is this the one she takes daily?"

"No. This is for extreme cases. In fact, the last time she had to take one was almost two years ago when she was writing the Homecoming episode. She has a mild mood stabilizer she takes every morning that helps keep her brain in check."

Arnold looked up at Tad. "Why didn't she ever tell me?"

Tad's eyes rose. "Seriously? You were the last person she ever wanted to know. Your opinion of her, even back in high school, was the one she valued the most. She knew how me and Phoebe felt about her, that was a given, but you…to lose your good opinion of her, that was the one thing she never wanted to happen."

"But it happened anyway. Did…" he swallowed. "Did Phoebe know?"

"Of course. Phoebe knew everything involving Hel. We were sworn to secrecy though, even Gerald didn't know."

"But he does now."

"Do you remember when I told you that the first three days after the shooting, I was on suicide watch with her?" He waited for Arnold to nod. "Those weren't working. She was in such a traumatic state that none of the medicine was working. Bob didn't even know she was going to a psychiatrist much less taking medicine so to ask him for anything was ridiculous. By day two I knew her state was beyond what I could do alone. So I made the executive decision to call her psychiatrist. And then I called Gerald because I needed help to get her to the office. He came, took one look at Hel. She was a mess. She was still hysterically sobbing, her hair was all over the place, she still wore the clothes her mom brought when they picked her up from the hospital. She was scaring me so I can only imagine what Gerald thought. But he stepped into her room, grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her hard. I can still remember what he said because it was the only thing that had gotten through her head since she was released from the hospital. He said, 'Knock it off Pataki, we just lost Phoebe, I will not lose her best friend.' It was enough to snap Hel out of it for a bit. He wrapped an arm around her and we walked her to the car and to her psychiatrist's office. The doctor took one look at her and put her in the hospital for the weekend under her care. Her parents never knew, nobody knew except Gerald and I. That's why she wasn't at the funeral."

"At the time, I just assumed she didn't care."

"She was sedated. That scene during the Homecoming episode. I wrote that, because she couldn't. Everything that happened when Helen was on the floor with Sophie's body screaming? All of that happened. It wasn't because she didn't care. It's because she couldn't."

Arnold pulled the label from his bottle, thinking quietly. "What do I do?"

"What do you want to do?"

"No, I mean, about the medicine. Do I have to make sure she takes them or…"

"No, she's compliant on her medication. She takes it every morning after she wakes up." He pointed to the bottle. "This is only for extreme cases. Trust me, you'll know when she needs it. She spirals downwards rather fast. She's convinced you were going to hate her once you knew."

Arnold frowned. "Hate her? Why would I hate her? This isn't her fault, it's who she is. I love her Tad, all of her. I don't care about diagnosis' or anxiety attacks or any of that. I loved her even before I knew and knowing isn't going to change that."

Tad smirked, one eyebrow crooked up. "How far back does this even before you knew thing go?"

The front door opened again, breaking off their conversation.

"I'm back. Is everything okay?" Daphne's voice echoed off the hallway walls. She walked into the kitchen, smiling at Tad. "Hi Tad. So, what's going on with you and my best friend's mother?"

Tad laughed loudly. "You don't miss a beat, do you?"

"Come on, my dad and Hel finally got back together, it was only a matter of time before you and Rhonda hooked up. And being here for a month, it was kind of inevitable."

"Hooked up?"

"Not like that. Like met up with each other, went on dates, maybe hooked up but as I'm a kid with very delicate sensibilities, I don't need to know about that."

"Arnold, your daughter is a trip." Tad said, still laughing.

"And too smart for her own damn good sometimes." He agreed.  
"Not too smart. The way I figure it, I'm the only one who knows anything about the true story of Hillwood so I'm just doing some research, figuring out how much of my favorite show is real and how much is actually Hollywood."

Tad made zipping motion with his hand. "My lips are sealed."

"Uh huh. I have homework so if you need me I'll be upstairs in my room."

"Keep it quiet please, Helga is in my room sleeping. She doesn't feel good."

Daphne looked at her father and then to Tad before nodding and pulling a soda from the fridge.

"So there's, what, a little over a week before you two head back to LA? When is Hel just going to move her clothes here?"

Tad and Arnold shared a look as Daphne walked up the stairs.  
"Your daughter." Tad said, grinning. Arnold sighed.

"I know."


	14. Chapter 14

**AN:** More talk of mental illness, and some other stuff.

* * *

 _It was dark when Helga woke up un an unfamiliar place. The room was sparse and white, the only light source coming from a sliver of light behind a half open door. She sat up in bed, wrinkling her nose at the rough sheets._

" _You scared the hell out of him."_

 _The voice was quiet, coming from her left side. She looked towards the window. Gerald was sprawled in a chair, head leaning against his hand watching her._

" _How are you feeling?"_

" _Tired." She rubbed her arms. "And cold. Where am I?"_

" _The Meadows. Dr. Bliss admitted you yesterday. Do you remember anything?"_

 _She frowned, trying to remember the last couple of days. Tears sprang to her eyes and through the tears she saw Gerald straightened up in his chair._

" _It wasn't a dream," he confirmed. She began crying, her hands buried in her face. Gerald got up, noticing Tad sitting up in the other chair and climbing to his feet. He sat down on the bed and wrapped an arm around her shoulder._

" _It's okay, Helga. It's okay to cry. God knows I've been doing enough of it these last couple of days."_

 _Another arm wrapped around her and she knew instinctively it was Tad. She leaned against his chest, not saying anything to either man. Gerald continued talking._

 _I'll repeat what I told you when Tad called me the other day, I've lost her Helga, we've both lost her. Please don't make me lose the only other person who knew her as well as I did. It hurts, it hurts like Hell, but we have to live onto carry her legacy. Promise me you'll never do this again. If it gets too bad, you call me. You call Tad or you call me. No matter what time. Because I don't want to do this again. Because you know she's damn determined enough that death itself isn't going to stop her if she thinks you're doing something incredibly stupid."_

 _Helga shuddered in a breath, nodding against his shoulder._

" _Promise." Her voice was muffled against his shirt. Gerald and Tad sharing a look surprised that getting a promise from Helga was so easy._

" _What's today?" she asked. Tad winced._

" _Saturday the 20_ _th_ _."_

 _Helga sat up, fresh tears filling her eyes._

" _No no nono…."_

 _Tad reached over, stroking her arms. "Shhh….Hel, you were in no shape to go to the funeral. I promise once you get better and Dr. Bliss says you can handle it, we all go to the gravesite and see her. But not until Dr. Bliss signs off on it."_

" _Please tell me you went." She sobbed. "She deserved someone who loved her to see her off."_

" _We did." Gerald said. "Tad was hesitant to leave you, but I drug him to the service. Everyone was there. I explained your absence to her parents and they understood."_

" _It was beautiful, Hel." Tad said. "There were some theatrics that she would've mocked but besides that, it was perfect. Well, as perfect as a funeral can be."_

" _Now you. Get some sleep and we'll have the nurses call Dr. Bliss in the morning." Gerald said sliding off the bed and heading back to his chair. "I'm serious Pataki, don't pull this crap again. You let someone help you."_

 _Helga wiped her eyes and glared at Gerald. "Why do you care? You know my biggest secret, I'm broken. I'd figure you'd be singing that off the rooftops by now."_

 _Gerald glared right back. "You don't know me Pataki. We may not be best friends and we may argue all the time, but you are my baby girl's best friend. And we are friends enough that your misfortune is not what I want to see." He leaned back in his chair. "Besides, I can keep a secret. Hell, I've known since sixth grade that you've had the hots by my best friend and never said shit, why would I go around spilling this secret._

* * *

It was twilight when Tad finally left Arnold's house. Helga was still asleep in the upstairs bedroom and he and Arnold had talked seriously for several hours regarding everything Helga. He was surprised at how Arnold kept asking question after question until he understood everything. But then again, he shouldn't have been too surprised, this was, after all, Arnold Shortman. The man was the closest thing Hillwood had to a saint.

He was in his car and pulling away from the house when his phone rang. Glancing at the caller ID, he clicked the hands free device.

"Good evening, goddess, apologies for our lunch being cut short."

"Could you come by my house, please?"

He knew that tone of voice. It was the tone that Rhonda got when she was pissed off but trying to stay polite. He'd been witness to it more than once during their high school career.

"Of course I can. Is there any particular reason?"

"You need to pick up some things," Was the only answer he got. He headed towards Rhonda's trying to figure out what he'd left at her house.

* * *

He pulled up to her house, noticing the rental car parked in front of her yard as he pulled into the driveway behind her car. Rhonda was already at the open door when he got out and made his way to her porch.

"What does my goddess command?" he joked, taking care not to kiss her. He wasn't sure where Ronnie was and the last thing he wanted was for the teen girl to appear as he was kissing her mother. They hadn't told her yet, and if he had his way, he and Hel would leave town with Ronnie being none the wiser about he and her mother's…activities.

"You left something in my den."

Frowning, he walked past her towards the room at the back of the house. As far as he could remember, the one or two times he'd been at her house, they'd never made it as far as the den. He heard Ronnie talking as he approached and then a familiar voice answer.

Well shit.

He walked into the den, Rhonda close behind him.

Sitting in the den with Ronnie talking and laughing like they'd just seen each other the day before were Allen and Anne. They both looked up as he entered the room, Anne spotted him first, her face lighting up.

"Tad!"

He pointed a finger at the dark haired actress. "You are supposed to be on set. In California. What the hell?"

"I quit. Talked to the lawyer who said that he was violating my contract that he agreed to. So I told him he was an unprofessional asshat, blew it all up to the media, grabbed Allen and headed out of town."

"I was finished with my stuff." Allen added.

"We've been dying to see Hillwood and when Ronnie told us you and Hel were here, we figured there wasn't a better time."

Ronnie simply grinned at the two adults. "You aren't mad, are you? Because you should have seen the look on everyone's faces when they showed up at school. I thought Lyss was going to have a heart attack."

Allen grinned, poking her shoulder. "No. That one girl who is such a bitch to you…"

"Dallas," Anne supplied.

"Yeah, Dallas," Allen continued. "Her face was way better than your friend Lyss'."

The three laughed. Tad and Rhonda shared a look.

"Daphne said Ronnie was out with friends when she got home from school," Rhonda supplied to his confused look. "She walked in about thirty minutes ago with these two. I'm just as surprised about this as you are."

Tad sighed, rubbing his forehead. "You two are going to make me go grey before I turn forty-five."

"Tad, we were turning you grey way before this." Anne joked.

"Okay, you two are going to have to come with me. Our place has way more room than Rhonda's and she doesn't need two more mouths to feed. Especially two bored ones."

"Party pooper." Allen teased.

"I expected you to call Hel," Ronnie said. "I didn't even know you had Tad's number."

Allen snickered and Tad gave him a fierce glare. Ronnie looked back at Allen.

"What? Am I missing something?"

"Why wouldn't I have Tad's number, Ronnie? We were friends in high school, I told you that."

"Well yeah, but, you haven't seen him or Hel in years you said. I just figured you'd call Arnold who would tell Hel."

"Where is Hel?" Anne asked.

"Busy. Say goodbye to your friends and let's go." Tad said, his tone stating he was not going to argue. Allen and Anne groaned but stood up good-naturedly talking to Ronnie and giving her hugs. Tad spun on his heels and headed back towards the foyer, Rhonda talking one last look into the den before following.

"Rhon, I'm so sorry about this." Tad said when she reached him. "I had no idea they would do something as brainless as a cross country trip to visit Ronnie."

Rhonda lifted a shoulder. "I knew she was talking to them but I never asked about what. I have a feeling this is all on them. It'll be fine."

One side of his mouth quirked upwards, "You know, when you asked me to come over, this was the last thing I was expecting."

"You can never say I'm not full of surprises."

He gave short laugh. "No, my goddess, you are definitely not that."

"Oh my God!"

Rhonda and Tad turned to see Anne practically bouncing on the heels of her feet, her hand clutching Allen's arm. Ronnie was frowning at the scene before her.

"There's a happy ending! Holy crap Allen, we can totally do the you tube ending now!" She pulled her phone from her back pocket. "I gotta text Ariel."

"No!" Tad yelled, a hand out to stop her. "No! No texting Ariel, no snapchatting Becky, no calling Lana! And no you tube ending! I told you about that." He chucked a thumb towards the door. "Get to the car, now."

"But that was when you were insistent there was no chance in hell," Anne insisted. Allen grinned, kissing Ronnie on the cheek.

"We'll text you later gumdrop." He pulled out his keys, turning his grin onto Tad. "I should've known when Hel and Arnold got together that eventually everyone was getting a happy ending."

"Out!" Tad growled at them.

"Mom?" Ronnie asked, her eyes darting between her two friends, Tad and her mother. "What the hell? Is there something you want to tell me?"

Rhonda shot a glare towards the two young adults who were bickering as they walked out the door and then to Tad. He gave her an apologetic look. "You want me to stay?"

"No. I'll call you later."

He nodded, glancing one last time at the teen who he could tell was moments from figuring out what was happening and left the house. He'd deal with his two problems and then find out what the damage was later.

As soon as the door closed Ronnie turned to her mother.

"What is going on? Why are you suddenly so friendly with a guy you knew in high school? What are Anne and Allen talking about because the only thing they keep threatening to do on you tube is an unofficial scene where Brooke and Theo finally hook up."

Rhonda sighed, mentally wondering how she could murder two actors from a popular teen drama and not get caught. She had never been the one to break news gently, it was easier to lay it out and deal with the aftermath. She'd done the same thing when she'd broke the news of her and Dashiell's divorce.

"Ever After was loosely based on our shared high school experience." She said. Ronnie frowned.

"What? What do you mean loosely based? Like the characters? Some of the situations?"

Rhonda gave her a look. "Your grandmother's name is Brooke, Veronica, don't play dumb."

Ronnie's eyes widened in shock. She looked to the now closed front door and back to her mother. "Anne and Allen play you and…who? Tad?" Her eyes grew even wider. "Theo is Tad? That means Helen is…" Her face paled. "Does Daphne know?"

"Daphne already knows." Rhonda stated. "Apparently a couple of the kids told her during your trip to LA. According to her father, she freaked out…a lot."

Ronnie stood in stunned silence as she processed everything. She looked back at her mother, her dark eyes suddenly burning in anger and for the first time, Rhonda saw a hint of who she used to be in her daughter's eyes.

"Daphne knew and she didn't tell me? What the hell? The fact that I'm watching someone playing my mother sleep around with random guys on television is a pretty huge thing not to tell me!"

"Veronica Blair Montague!" Rhonda was getting angry. "Watch your mouth."

But Ronnie was on a roll. "Watch my mouth? I'm the one who had a crush on a guy who was playing the producer of my favorite damn show. And then someone who's supposed to be my best friend finds out that our parent's lives are being played out on TV for entertainment purposes and doesn't bother to tell me? How humiliating is that?"

"Not very considering only about six of us know the truth." Rhonda shot back. Ronnie's eyes narrowed.

"So that's why Tad's suddenly been around so often? You needed your jester back and he was only more than happy to come crawling back to you? That's just sad, Mom."

"That is quite enough." Rhonda snapped, her teeth clenched. "Go to your room. You can talk to me when you've calmed down."

"I've calmed down? You've been lying to me all these years and I'm the one who's out of line? You're just pathetic."

She spun on her heels and ran out of the foyer. A moment later she heard the door slam shut. Rhonda let out a heavy sigh, shoulders sagging as she rubbed her forehead. All in all, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. She briefly thought about texting Arnold but figured he had enough on his hands at the moment, he didn't need her ranting about her daughter's meltdown added to his plate. She'd talk to Tad about it when he called later.

* * *

When she woke up it was dark outside. The room she was in was dimly lit but she could see the night sky from the window across the room in her line of vision. Her head was fuzzy and her mouth felt like she'd eaten an entire bag of cotton. She moved slightly, hating the fuzzy feeling the Xanax always left her with. A hand touched her shoulder and she tried licking her lips, her body feeling uncoordinated.

"Water," she croaked as she rolled over and tried to sit up. Hands helped her up and placed a cool water bottle in her hand. She drank the entire bottle greedily, savoring every drop that washed away the dry mouth feeling. If she had this feeling, then she had an anxiety attack. Which meant…

The hand still on her shoulder moved, stroking lightly down her arm. She looked over at Arnold, who was sitting in the bed next to her, his back against the headboard, a book in his lap. He watched her, his hand stroking her arm.

"Drink," he encouraged. "Do you need another one? Tad said you might be thirsty."

She shook her head, finishing the bottle off. She kept eye contact with him, not sure what was about to happen. He waited until she'd finished drinking and then took the bottle away from her. Marking his place, he put the book on the night stand and moved so he was facing her.

"First, I'm sorry. I called Tad because I was scared. I didn't know what to do, didn't know what I'd do wrong and I needed someone who could tell me what was going on, what I needed to do."

"You didn't…" she started but fell silent when his finger touched her lips.

"Let me talk first. Tad came in and fixed everything. And then he told me everything, after he made sure I wasn't going to cut and run. He told me about your diagnosis, he told me about the pills, about the attacks, how they work, what to look for, how to try to stop one before it starts. He told me how you managed them, how you've been living with them, the time he was scared you wouldn't. Everything. I made him. I asked him." His hands reached out, clasped her hands and pulled them into his lap. "Nothing he told me made me think that we were a bad idea. Nothing he said about you makes me love you any less. Nothing he told me is going to make me not continue to fight for what we have. I love you Helga. I loved you before I knew and I love you now."

She shook her head. "I'm broken. Crazy."

"No. You're not crazy, these pills don't make you crazy. And as for broken, we're all broken in some way. But none of that makes me love you any less. I want to be with you; all of you, no matter what. I'm going to ask you a straight question and I want you to be brutally honest with me, it's just us, you and me. Do you want to be with me?"

"More than anything. It's all I've ever wanted." Her answer flowed from her mouth so quickly it surprised even her. He smiled.

"Then you need to be honest with me. Especially regarding this. As honest as you are with Tad. You need to tell me when you're about to have an attack, or if you're not feeling particularly well that day, because Tad's had decades to figure out your tells, I'm just learning. You have to give me some time to figure this out."

She nodded. "Okay. But, I'm so sorry…"

He leaned forward, his lips touching hers, one hand reaching up to caress her cheek.

"No more apologies."

She nodded, looking into his eyes. She reached out, clutching onto him, her lips meeting his again. Her arms tightened around his shoulders as she poured everything she could into the kiss, showing him what she hadn't been able to tell him. When they parted again, his breath was ragged.

"I love you," she whispered against his lips, her eyes still closed. "I love you more than myself and I would die before I let anything hurt you."

His fingers stroked her cheek. "You could never hurt me." One more sift kiss before he pulled back. "Do you think you can sleep?"

She was surprised to find just how tired she still was. Which in hindsight, shouldn't have surprised her, the Xanax usually knocked her out for almost a twelve-hour span and she'd only been asleep for what looked like maybe eight hours. Her body was still drained.

He reached over and switched off the night stand light, putting the room into semi darkness. Snuggling back into the bed, she curled against him, relishing the feeling of his arms circling her body making her feel protected.

She rested her head against his chest and fell asleep.

* * *

Helga stood in a garden, trees lining the area behind her, providing shade. Before her was a rock garden surrounding a small fountain that gurgled quietly. Next to the rock garden stood a bench. She looked around the tranquil area frowning.

"Well, this is a damn weird dream." She said, her voice breaking the quiet of the place. "I don't even know any place like this."

"Not everything is about you, Helga." A voice said behind her.

Helga froze, tearing up. She hadn't heard that voice in almost thirty years, not in her dreams, not in her memories, yet even now, it was as familiar to her as her own.

She spun around, her eyes swimming in tears, her knees collapsing. She grabbed the back of the bench for support.

Standing by the rock garden was a young woman with black hair and dark eyes enhanced by the blue frames of her glasses. She wore jeans and a Hillwood jaguar's tee shirt.

Helga couldn't speak, the letters not able to form in her mouth. She stared at the young woman as a starving man looking upon a five course meal.

The young woman raised an eyebrow.

"This isn't going to go any faster if you stand there gawking at me, ane."

Helga burst into tears, her knees finally failing her. She sunk into the grass, her hands covering her face.

"Oh, Helga, no." She felt a light touch on her shoulder and looked up.

Phoebe was kneeling before her, her hand on her shoulder, looking at her in concern.

"I thought you were finally strong enough for this."

"You can touch me?" she asked, her chest still heaving. "Can I touch you?"

"Of course, silly." Taking Helga's hand, she lifted it to her shoulder. "I'm as real as you are in this place." The wicked glint Helga still recognized shone in her eyes. "It'd get real boring when Gerald visited if I couldn't."

With a sob, Helga rose up on her knees and clutched her best friend in a tight hug, her face buried in the smaller girl's shoulder. Phoebe clutched at her just as tight.

"I'm so sorry," Helga sobbed onto her shoulder. "I'm so sorry I couldn't save you."

"No, no, don't," Phoebe said, stroking the blonde's hair. She pulled her away just enough so they could look at each other. "Don't think that I brought you here for some weird Jacob Marley visitation so I could rattle my chains and moan "repent" because that isn't going to happen. You are not responsible for what happened to me Helga Pataki. You tried your best to save me, to keep me from harm. It was simple physics, the right ricochet angle at the right time that hit me in the right place. There was nothing you or anyone else could have done to save me."

"I could have…" she started. Phoebe put a finger to her lips, silencing her.

"Look at me. There was nothing that could have been done differently. You stayed by my side, you held my hand, you talked to me. I heard you Helga and trust me, in that moment, even knowing I was going to die, I was grateful that I had two of the people I loved the most, outside my family, with me. I felt safe because I knew you and Gerald would take care of me. So please, stop blaming yourself for something you couldn't have ever prevented."

Helga sniffed and nodded, her hands still clutching Phoebe's upper arms. The dark haired woman smiled.

"Good. Because I've missed my best friend and I honestly thought I was going to have to wait until you died before I saw you again."

"How is this possible?"

Phoebe shrugged. "Don't know. And it's annoying not knowing, trust me. You know me, I have to understand everything. But I felt you were finally strong enough to see me. Gerald said you were and I warned him if he was making stuff up, I was going to make sure he regretted it."

Helga laughed, moving one hand to wipe her eyes. "He said you were going to yell at him for making me cry."

"I couldn't, that was me jumping the gun." She stood up and helped Helga to her feet. "Come on, we've only got a limited amount of time and a whole lot of catching up to do."

"How does this work?" Helga asked, still holding on to Phoebe's hand as they moved to the bench. She was terrified that if she let go Phoebe would disappear. "Is this the only time I'll ever see you?"

"No. Now that I've made contact," she wiggled her free hand in front of Helga's face. "Boo. I'll be able to visit you any time. The hard part was getting you here this first time. Anything after this is cake. Now," she grinned. "Now that you've finally splurged on ice cream, how did it taste?"


	15. Chapter 15

" _Did you hear?"_

 _Rhonda looked at the brunette leaning half out of her desk as she put her books on her own desk._

" _Hear what?"_

" _About that kid in Fifth Period Physics! It's all over the school!"_

" _Are you talking about that guy who went nuts?" Another girl asked as she dropped her satchel on her desk. "There were cops and an ambulance here."_

" _How did I miss this?"_

 _Rhonda was the queen of gossip so how an event this huge happened not even two periods ago without her hearing a peep about it was inexcusable. The blonde with the satchel settled herself on the brunette's desk._

" _I'm in the Physics class so I had like a front row seat."_

 _The brunette gasped. "Liz, oh my God, tell us!"_

" _He just snapped. Like Mr. Conrad asked him a question and he like just freaked out. Swept everything off his desk. Freaked at the teacher. So while he's trying to call the office, he totally goes to the window and I'm thinking he's gonna open it to jump. But no, he starts punching the window! Like there was blood everywhere and the glass actually cracked. He just kept punching-like dead silent through the whole thing. Mr. Brick comes in with the Nurse and the kid like tried to hit him."_

 _The three girls were engrossed in the conversation and didn't notice Nadine walk into the class. She stopped at the doorway, listening to the gossip._

" _So Mr. Brick tells the Nurse to call the cops and Mr. Conrad starts getting us out of class. Some of the girls were crying, it was nuts. Anyway, he totally didn't stop punching until the cops came with some ambulance guys who like, tackled him and shot him up with something."_

 _Nadine stood frozen in her spot, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. She hadn't heard from Brian in two hours and she knew he had Physics in fifth period._

" _They took him away in a stretcher, he was like screaming and yelling a bunch of nonsense, totally babbling. Oh my God, it was the most exciting thing that happened today!"_

" _Who was it?" Rhonda asked. "Does anyone know?"_

" _Brian something. Tall, nerdy looking guy with glasses, "Liz said. "Like, always really quiet."_

" _It's always the quiet ones." The brunette said slyly._

 _Nadine stepped back out of the classroom, tears in her eyes, her hand covering a choked sob. In the class, Rhonda was still unaware of Nadine behind her._

" _Good riddance, I say. Last thing we need is another Homecoming."_

 _Nadine raced down the hallway, tears blocking her vision as she knocked into students in her desperate attempt to get away._

 _Brian was gone. She couldn't help him, hadn't been there when he needed her the most. And because of that, he could no longer be there for her._

 _She burst out of the school, books and backpack forgotten and ran. She just needed to run. Her life was spinning out of control and she needed just one thing she could force into conforming. So she would run until she couldn't run anymore._

* * *

Daphne walked down the hallway and was cornered by Ronnie the minute she reached her locker.  
"Bathroom. Now!"

"Good morning to you to-hey!" she shouted as Ronnie grabbed her arm and pulled. She stumbled, tightening her grip on her book bag. "Can I drop my books off first, jeez!"

Ronnie pulled her into a small bathroom in the side H hallway, checking to see if there was anyone in it before locking the door behind them.

"What the heck? Did something happen?"

"Did something happen?" Ronnie gave a sharp laugh. "Oh yeah, something happened."

"Well hold on, let me text Lyss and Izzy to come up here and we'll take care of it."

"I don't think you want them up here for this, Arthur's daughter."

Daphne's fingers froze on her phone. She looked up at Ronnie's face, noticing for the first time that her best friend was furious. "This has to do with Allen and Anne, doesn't it?"

"This has less to do with Allen and Anne and more about the fact that you've been lying to me," Ronnie snapped. "Our parents? Ever After is based on our parent's lives? My mother is freaking Brooke and your parents are based on Arthur and Lisa? And I found out you knew? All this time and you knew? How could you keep something like this from me?"

"What the hell was I supposed to say? Hey Ronnie, your mom and one of the producers of the show are the basis for your favorite characters. Like I wasn't already freaking out enough that I had a crush on the guy who played my Dad? Talk about an Electra complex!"

"You lied to me!"

"I didn't lie to you! I just didn't tell you because I knew you'd be hurt,"

"That's putting it mildly. You watched that entire final season knowing that I was being humiliated."

"What? You? You weren't even alive! And freaking like five people and now the two of us are the only ones who know that the damn show is based on our parent's lives!"

"You could have told me! Do you know how embarrassing it was to learn from Allen and Anne?"

Daphne folded her arms across her chest. "Yeah, I do, because I learned it from freaking Becky, Ariel and Lana! They thought it was cool until I started hyperventilating at the lunch table!"

"You knew on our second day there? You're supposed to be my best friend Daphne!"

"I am your best friend Veronica, which is the reason I didn't tell you!"

"I can't even talk to you right now, I'm so mad at you."

"You're mad at me? For what? Not telling you and watching you go through this a year ago? You know the rule Ronnie, if we're not telling all, we're not telling anyone. Do you really think Lyss and Izzy need to know this? For all we know their parents could be in the show too! Do you really want to deal with Lyss posting that crap on social media?"

"I'm not pulling a you. They should have the right to decide, not have it withheld from them."

Daphne shouldered her bag. "Fine. Then you tell them, because I'm not upending anyone else's life. Mine was bad enough, I wasn't going to do it to my best friends either."

"Are you really? My best friend?"

Daphne's mouth thinned and she unlocked the bathroom door. "Do what you want. But quit acting like a fucking overdramatic spoiled brat. Daddy would be so proud of you right now."

She flung open the bathroom door and stormed down the hallways, furiously blinking tears away from her eyes. How dare Ronnie be mad at her? She wasn't the one who had the mad crush on the actor who was supposed to be playing her father on the show. Not only did she have a breakdown about the show being about her parent's lives, she had to question more of her own Freudian Elektra complex thoughts on just why she had crushed on someone who reminded her of her father and why she had so actively protested against the actress who had played her mother. Ronnie had only crushed on the actor who played one of the producers of the show; Tad had no link to her at the moment.

No, she hadn't told her about the link when she'd known, why would she? Ronnie was an introvert, she didn't like being in the spotlight and didn't like conflict. Or at least she didn't back then. So why in the heck would she pull one of her best friends into a situation like that when it was glaringly obvious throughout the entire trip that Ronnie was overwhelmed and fighting to keep her head in the game at all times. Which at the time, she understood. Meeting favorite actors from favorite televisions shows would've sent anyone into the same panicked fangirl mode. But for Ronnie to be humiliated about this? If anything her mother should be the one to express outrage and humiliation, not Ronnie. And it didn't seem as if Rhonda cared one way or the other regarding the content of the television show. According to her dad, Rhonda might have had an inkling from the beginning and was perfectly okay with it. So why was Ronnie being a hysterical drama queen about it?

She walked into the library and dumped her book bag and purse behind the circulation desk before heading straight to the resource section. She had a couple of news items left to look up before she finished her research into her family and extended families past life.

"Good morning Daphne." Ms. Harris called out from the non-fiction section as she passed. "I wanted to thank you for compiling the information and photos for next year's Homecoming memorial. I appreciate it, although I have no idea where you found some of those articles and photos."

"It's all about where you look Ms. H. And you're welcome. It was my pleasure. It gave me more insight into my parents and my extended family than I had before." She sat down at one of the computers and started it up. "Although if the school does do something next year at Homecoming, you might want to talk to Detective Johannsen. I have a feeling from everything I've pieced together that Phoebe would've been my unofficial Aunt and Alyssa's official aunt had she lived."

The librarian gave a fond smile. "Those two were inseparable from what I remember. He used to wait for her outside the classroom after every club meeting. Those two would've ended up the high school sweethearts you saw at the Twentieth reunion still married with kids and still ridiculously happy." She patted Daphne's shoulder as she passed. "You should think about going into research as a profession. You're thorough and something tells me you'd be really good at it. Let me know if you need anything."

"Thanks Ms. H." She connected to the internet and opened a notebook she'd been using to scribble down notes and keywords during this search. Within minutes she was waist deep into the internet.

She weeded through the unrelated articles, wrote down links for later research and navigated her way through the articles she did find, making copies and taking notes. She had to leave the desk a couple of times to help Ms. Harris or to answer questions from students coming in looking for books. The last time she returned to her desk there was a link to a news article from the nineties regarding a huge shopping mall that was supposed to go up in Hillwood. Curious, she clicked the link. Her eyes widened as the page opened to a newspaper article. The first picture that accompanied the article was one of two young kids on the shoulders of adults. She immediately recognized the picture of her great grandfather and the blue hat that sat on top of the blond boy's head. She was looking at a picture of her father when he was a kid. The other man holding a blond girl in a ripped pink dress and ponytails looked familiar to her; she'd seen him around town in her life.

The caption below read: **Arnold_ and Helga Pataki with their guardians after unveiling real estate tycoon Scheck's plot to tear down historical site for shopping center complex**.

The next picture was one of three kids standing in front of an overturned city bus. The first two were her father and Hel and the third kid she recognized as Gerald.

She read the article, more questions than answers coming as she read about three ten-year-old kids rescuing the city from Future Tech Industries plan to tear down half a city to build a shopping complex even she knew would've gone under within a decade.

Hel's father was Bob Pataki of Big Bob's Electronics? Her grandparent's boarding house was a historical landmark? Her dad saved an entire neighborhood at ten years old? Gerald drove a bus at ten? Just what kind of childhood did her father and his friends have growing up?

She printed a couple of copies of the article to show her father and Alyssa. Because Lyss was going to freak out when she found out about this. She was already lamenting the fact that her Uncle was the Keeper of the Tales and that he'd gone on more adventures around the town before he hit double digits than any of them had their entire seventeen years of living.

"You have about five minutes Daphne." Ms. Harris called out from the circulation desk. Daphne glanced up at the clock over the desk and began shutting everything down. During the entire hour she'd been too busy to think about Ronnie and their fight but now that she was wrapping up, it all came back with a vengeance.

"Hey Ms. H, do you mind If I come in here and do some more stuff during lunch?" She asked as she headed towards the desk to gather her stuff. "I feel bad for doing research this past week instead of helping you out like I'm supposed to be doing."

"You gotten further on the research than I ever had so it wasn't a complete waste. But if you want to reshelf books on your lunch break, I for one, am not going to say no to you."

Daphne gave her a thankful smile as she shouldered her backpack. "Thanks Ms. H. I'll see you later."

* * *

"Has anyone seen Daphne?" Alyssa asked putting her tray down on the table and handing Ronnie her salad and bottle of water. "Usually she's here by now or she should've texted one of us to let us know she was going to be late."

Isabella shrugged, sitting down and taking a bite of her pizza. "I haven't, but she'd gonna have a hell of a time getting anything to eat if she doesn't get here soon."

"Ronnie?" Alyssa asked of the quiet girl across from them eating her salad and looking through her phone. She looked up.

"What?"

"Have you talked to Daphne today?"

She opened her mouth to answer and paused. Now was the perfect time to tell both of them about Ever After and the link it had to their lives. That their favorite show was just a recreation of their parent's lives. It was a farce, a sham, plagiarism at its most basic. She opened her mouth again and again she paused. Alyssa and Isabella were both looking at her now, waiting for her to answer.  
"No. I know she's here but I haven't talked to her yet today."

Alyssa pulled out her phone and began texting Daphne as Ronnie went back to her salad.

Daphne was right. Telling the other two girls in their neat foursome would be pointless. It wasn't plagiarism, maybe libel if one squinted but how would anyone prove it? And it wasn't her life, she realized, it was her mother's life. Her mother's history in high school. Both her mother and Daphne had told the truth; it didn't affect her. If her mother was okay with the show, and she's watched every episode of the entire four year run, then there was no reason Ronnie should be upset about it. Nobody else knew except a small handful. Why should she tell Lyss and Izzy about it? What were the chances Lyss' parents were even in it? Izzy's might be, but she couldn't guarantee that with any certainty. Why start an entire drama for what ifs? And truth be told, it really didn't affect how she thought or felt about Anne and Allen, who both knew and played the parts, so why was she so mad at Daphne for it?

Dammit, she hated it when Daphne made sense. Couldn't she just remain indignant about the entire affair?

Her phone buzzed and she pulled up her messenger.

 **Allen: U still mad?**

 **Allen: don't be mad gumdrop.**

She wrinkled her nose and typed out a response.

 **Ronnie: I want to be mad but no, I'm not mad.**

 **Allen:**

 **Anne: Good because you'd have to be mad at us too. We've known for a bit, Becky told us after you guys left.**

 **Allen: She also told us how she, L and A thought they broke D when they told her.**

 **Anne: I figured by now you'd know.**

 **Ronnie: To be fair, after we got home Lyss and Izzy moaned every time we talked about it after the first week so we sorta stopped.**

 **Ronnie: You forget, until yesterday they thought I was social media stalking you two.**

 **Allen: Oh yeah, who's got secrets? U got secrets!**

 **Anne: You want us to talk to them?**

 **Ronnie: Nah. I mean, it's gonna have to be a given since we're going for food after school. You're still picking us up, right?**

"Are you texting Anne and Allen?" Alyssa asked. Ronnie glanced up again.

"Oh, now they're real?"

"Funny," Isabella said. "And we totally deserved that. Sorry."

She shook her head. "No, sorry. That was mean. Yes, I'm just making sure they're still picking us up after school."

"Hey, so you really know Allen Adams?" A voice said as a blond girl they three recognized as one of Dallas' friends sat down at the table with them. Isabella leaned against the table.  
"Wrong table, blondie. You need the one over there."

The blonde ignored her, instead focusing her attention solely on Ronnie.

"So what's he like? How did you meet him? Why are you guys' friends?"

Alyssa glared at the girl. "My friend told you, you're at the wrong table."

"Um, I'm trying to have a conversation." The blonde snapped.

"I'm not." Ronnie said. "I don't know you and my friendship with anyone is quite frankly none of your business."

The blonde frowned. "Wow, you don't have to be rude about it. I was just asking a question. What, you think because your friends with some Hollywood stars, you're suddenly better than us?"

"No, I think because you think I'm friends with some Hollywood stars that gives you the right to come over here and ask me questions. And you're the rude one interrupting our conversation to ask me invasive questions regarding my personal life."

Alyssa laughed. "Damn! Ronnie finally grew a backbone!"

"You heard her, it's time for you to leave." Isabella threatened. The blonde huffed and stood up.

"Just because you know people doesn't make you better than anyone." She snapped.

"She's always been better than you anyway." Alyssa snapped back. "Bye Felicia."

Ronnie waited until the blonde stomped back to her table to let out the snicker she'd been holding. "Did you seriously just 'bye Felicia' her?"

"Girl, bitches like that just piss me off." Alyssa answered, elbowing an also snickering Isabella. "So what did Allen say?"

Ronnie glanced down at her phone, temporarily forgetting about their conversation when Dallas' friend showed up.

 **Allen: U know it! Same time, same station.**

 **Allen: WE NEED COFFEE! ALL THE COFFEE!**

Ronnie grinned and looked up at her friends. "Yeah, they'll be here."

* * *

Daphne had gone to her locker between the final two classes so she wouldn't have to stop by there at the end of school. She didn't want to deal with Ronnie on their way home and she knew that Allen and Anne would be picking everyone up from school today because Alyssa had been texting her almost non-stop after lunch trying to find out where she was and why she hadn't come to lunch. She'd finally given in and texted her back on her way to her final class telling her that she had a ton of projects due and was swamped.

The fact that both Alyssa and Isabella hadn't been blowing up her phone with panicked texts after lunch told her that Ronnie hadn't told them anything about their fight or the information Ronnie had learned the night before. Which made Daphne long to send Ronnie a "hypocrite" text but at this point she was just past done with the entire argument. She just wanted to go home and talk to her Dad about this entire fight. For once, she found herself hoping that Hel wasn't there so she could just have ten minutes by herself with her father. There were things she needed to talk out and she still felt uncomfortable discussing them opening with Hel there.

Gathering her book bag, she slid out of class as the bell rang and headed towards the opposite door they usually walked out. She was debating on waiting for the bus or just walking home when she heard her name being called.

"Hey Daphne!"

Xander Miller was standing by his truck waving towards her. She waved back and he motioned her towards the car.

"Where you going?"

"Um…I have a bunch of projects due at the end of the week," she lied. "I told the others to go on without me."

"Well, you need a ride?" he asked. "Izzy said they were meeting friends at Slaussen's after school but I've got a debate meeting at five. I can give you a ride home. It's on my way to the courthouse."

"Yeah, if you don't mind, that would be great. Thanks."

"Sure. Hop in."

She climbed into the truck, putting her book bag on her lap as he got in. Izzy's newly minted boyfriend had always been the quiet type so she'd never really noticed him until he'd gotten together with Izzy. He started the truck and drove out of the back parking lot.

"Thanks a lot for this Xander."

"Not a problem. You can make it up to me by telling me what Izzy's favorite flowers are."

Daphne laughed. "For Homecoming?"

"It's cheesy yeah, and I know she said I didn't need to, but I really like her."

"Have you met her parents yet?"

"Not yet. I mean, I've seen her Dad when I've had to pick up stuff for my Dad at the butcher shop. He's kind of intimidating."

Daphne laughed. "Don't let his gruff exterior scare you, Mr. Berman is a softie when it comes to Izzy and Zeke. The only time you'll have to worry about him is if you hurt Izzy, but to tell the truth, you're going to have to worry about a bunch of people if you hurt Izzy."

"Wow. What a way to sneak in the 'don't hurt her or you'll regret speech'."

Daphne laughed again. "It's peonies. Pink ones especially. She's kind of a girl when it comes to peonies."

"Got it."

* * *

"We're missing someone." Allen said as three of the girls approached the car.

"I texted Daphne earlier to find to find out where she was." Alyssa said as she climbed into the backseat. "She said she had a bunch of projects to finish by the end of this week."

Allen and Anne shared a look and then looked at Ronnie.

"What did you do gumdrop?" he asked quietly as Isabella climbed into the backseat after her friend.

"Can we talk about this later? Daphne's right, Lyss and Izzy don't need to know anything about this."

"Okay, but when we drop them off, the three of us are going to have a nice chat."

"Why?" she almost whined, hating her voice. Allen gave her a look that was creepily like the one Theo had given Brooke when she was drunk and asking why he was helping her.

On the other side of the car, Anne hit the roof of the car to get their attention. "Hey, can we continue this spat at the diner? I need coffee."

"Get in Ronnie, we'll talk about this later."

"You make that sound so ominous."

He waggled his fingers at her as she climbed into the car.

"Booga-booga-booga!"

* * *

Arnold walked into his house, phone in his hand reading a text Helga had sent him a couple of hours ago.

 **Do you have strip steak? I know a recipe for a great wasabi beef roll-up that would make Harold jealous. Text me before 5 if I need to pick them up. I'll even get them from Harold.**

"Daddy?"

"Do we have strip steak?" he asked, glancing at the time. Still about fifteen minutes before five.

"Are you alone?"

"Did you expect me not to be?"

Daphne thundered down the stairs as he put up his satchel.

"Anymore Hel's usually with you."

"She's coming over in a bit, she's offered to cook…" He glanced up noticing his daughter's red eyes. "What's wrong Kimba?"

Daphne huffed, angrily wiping her eyes. "Ronnie knows. About the show and about me knowing."

He pulled her to him, giving her a hug. She sniffed and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"She took it bad, huh?"

"She drug me into the bathroom at school and screamed at me. Like it's my fault." Sniffing again she pulled back and folded her arms tightly across her chest. "She had the absolute gall to tell me she was humiliated. Over what?"

She followed him into the kitchen, where he peeked into the freezer. "What the hell-"

"Daph…"

"-heck does she have to be humiliated about? It's not her freaking life on the screen. She wasn't even born yet. If anyone should be pis-er-mad, it's you and her mom!"

"Kimba, we were mad about it. Or rather I was, Rhonda was pretty understanding about the whole thing. But I got over it, you got over it and Ronnie will get over it. It's come as a shock to her, remember, you were pretty freaked out over it too."

"Well, yeah but I didn't get mad at you about it."

Helga paid the taxi driver and slid out of the car in front of Arnold's house. She was incredibly early but he hadn't gotten back to her yet and she figured that maybe she could convince Daphne to help her with the beginning of dinner and text Arnold to pick up some on his way home. She walked up the front walk, noticing his car in the driveway.

"I'm just so mad. She's mad because I didn't tell her. Should I have told her? I didn't want her freaking out in LA also. I mean, I was already having a panic attack because of my TV crush issues."

Arnold chuckled. "Sorry Kimba, but Anderson is nothing like me."

"But still creepy. She said she was going to tell Lyss and Izzy and I told her she'd have to do it by herself because they didn't need that drama. Stephanie and Gordon were based on Izzy's parent's, weren't they?"

Arnold nodded. "Yep. The only one not really in the show was Timberly. Unless they showed siblings of Marcus at some point I missed."

"No, they hardly showed parents and siblings." She sighed. "Somedays I wish I had never entered that stupid contest. Then I wouldn't be going through all of this crap."

* * *

The windows were open in the house and Helga could hear Daphne and Arnold talking, it was faint but she as she approached the door to knock their voices were understandable.

"Somedays I wish I had never entered that stupid contest."

Helga's fist froze inches above the door. She went cold. Slowly, she lowered her hand and backed away from the door. Everything had been going well, too well. Even after this morning, when she woke up to his kiss and a promise that they would talk again this evening. She backed up until her feet ran out of porch.

As much as she hated Lila, she liked Daphne. And Arnold's daughter had a bigger claim on him than she. She blinked back tears and turning around, hurried off of the porch and down the block. She needed to be alone. She needed to go home.

* * *

Arnold looked back at his daughter, frowning. "You don't mean that."

"Maybe? If I hadn't entered that contest, then I wouldn't have won and then Ronnie wouldn't have meet Anne and Allen and they wouldn't have come down here to visit her and spill the beans."

"Anne and Allen are in town? Those are the friends she was with yesterday?"

"Dad!"

"What? Sweetie, this isn't anyone's fault. Ronnie's just upset. She'll get over it, we all did. And if it doesn't upset her mother, then it sure as hell shouldn't upset her. She'll come around and Rhonda will talk to her and it'll all blow over. As for you not entering the contest, the flip side of that would've been your mom and I still fighting over divorce papers and custody. Would you have preferred that?"

"No, but…"

"But what?"

Daphne shrugged, her foot tapping nervously. "It's just…we were good, just us. Everything is changing."

Arnold grinned, he'd been waiting for this. "Kimba, you're a Senior. In less than a year you'll be going to college, probably somewhere out of state. Everything is already changing. Helga is just part of that change. What, did you think I was just going to sit at home while you were at school and watch the window for your return?"

She laughed. "No."

"Because I have plans, little girl. Perhaps hanging out with your grandparents for a couple of months, doing humanitarian work in South America. Plans."

She kept laughing. "Dad, stop."

"Helga is a good change in my life. One I wouldn't have had you not entered. As much as I am not fond of your mother anymore, I wouldn't change a damn thing I did with her because I got you. Please don't wish away the good outcomes because of one bad one."

"Sorry."

"Don't be sorry Kimba. But on that note, I want you to know that I would never bring anyone into this house that I wasn't serious about. And I'm serious about Helga."

"Like marriage serious?"

"Possibly. That depends on Helga. But definitely spend the rest of my life with her serious."

Daphne twisted her mouth around in thought. Finally, she shrugged.

"I'm okay with that. I like Hel. And I like seeing you happy."

"Thanks Kimba. I like seeing you happy too. Now, it seems we don't have strip steak in the freezer, so I might have to get some." Pulling out his phone, he shot a text off to Helga.

* * *

Helga was sitting at Slaussen's, her phone turned off, a coffee and hot fudge sundae in front of her.

She'd walked around Hillwood aimlessly, not willing to go home in case of Tad or the kids being there. She was not in the right frame of mind to deal with anyone, and right now, she had nowhere to escape to. At home she could hide out on the roof with a book and a glass of wine and escape reality until she was ready to deal with it again. Here…there was nowhere.

She wanted to go home. She wanted the heat of the Californian sun beating down on her. She wanted evenings sitting on the roof or driving to the beach and spending the day there with a notebook. She wanted to be anyplace that wasn't Hillwood. This wasn't her home anymore, it never was. LA was her home and she'd spent more than enough time away from it.

The bell over the door tinkled and she ignored it, writing in a notebook she'd bought at the local drug store.

"Hurry up and pick out what you want, we ain't got a lot of time."

The deep, gruff voice filled the quiet shop and Helga froze, her blood running cold. The pen stopped on the paper and she lifted her eyes towards the front counter.

Two teenagers were standing by the counter, giving their order; an older boy looking like he was out of high school and a younger girl about thirteen. The girl was wearing an Ever After tee shirt. Beside them, looking at his phone was Bob Pataki, his hair fully white now.

"I want a strawberry shake," the girl announced.

"Fine, fine."

The older boy looked at the guy behind the counter. "Strawberry shake and a double scoop of rocky road in a waffle cone."

"That all you want Grant?"

"Workouts start next week Grandpa,"

Sweet Lord, these were Olga's kids. Bob finally got his male heir.

The girl looked up at him. "Should we get anything for Ella?"

"Your sister didn't want to come; she doesn't get ice cream. But hurry it up, will ya? Before your mother comes in here!"

The door opened again and Helga cringed further into her seat as she heard Olga's syrupy sickening voice. "Daddy! I caught you! Why are you feeding my children processed sugar?"

"Criminy Olga, it's ice cream. Grant needs the extra calories for next week."

"Daddy."

"Mom, chill out, it's ice cream." The boy, Grant said, taking the cone and the shake from the guy behind the counter and handing the shake to his sister.

"Did you get something for your sister?"

"Grandpa said we didn't have to." The girl said.

"Daddy, I told you, I don't play favorites in my household."

"I'm not playing favorites; your daughter didn't want to come."

The tall blond sighed dramatically, eyeing the younger girl's shirt. "Maribeth, what have I told you about that shirt, I don't like that show, it's too depressing."

Helga had to hold back a snort. She lifted her head just enough that she wasn't straining her eyes anymore trying to inconspicuously watch them. The preteen folded her arms over her chest.

"Daddy said there was nothing wrong with the show and I could wear the shirt as much as I wanted."

Olga rolled her eyes and glanced around the store. Her eyes fell on Helga's table and Helga froze, not even breathing. Olga looked at her, her brow furrowing before turning away and pointing towards the door.

"Out. All of you. Let's go. We're supposed to meet Mommy and Ella for dinner in a bit."

Bob had paid for the cones and slapped the boy on the back, following them out of the store. His eyes scanned the store as he left, passing right over her table without comment.

Helga relaxed as they filed out, her eyes burning.

Her family had just been in here and had looked right over her as if she hadn't existed.

Granted, she hadn't existed in their lives for a long time, but it didn't stop hurting each time it happened. On top of everything else that day, she was half tempted to call the airport and book a flight home tonight. The door opened again and a moment later, someone sat down in the booth opposite of her. She looked up to see Patty watching her.

"Saw the Pataki/Carson clan piling out of here." She ducked her head to catch Helga's eyes. "You doing okay?"

"No." she answered honestly. "But I'll survive. It's what I do."

Patty didn't push any further. "Okay. Want to have dinner with me? Harold's taking Zeke to football practice and Izzy is at Lyss' so it's just me for dinner."

Helga pointed to her hot fudge sundae. "This is my dinner."

Patty grinned. "Even better. It's been a while since I've had ice cream for dinner."


	16. Chapter 16

_As the spotlight shown on him, he looked around in confusion, not quite sure who the spotlight was looking for and why everyone was applauding around him. Lila stood in stunned shock, staring at him her eyes wide and her mouth agape. A teen standing next to him poked him in the shoulder._

" _Get up there!"_

 _Arnold looked from a disbelieving Lila to the kid, still not understanding what was happening._

" _What?"_

" _You've been voted Prom King, get up there!"_

 _To the right of him he spotted Eugene and Sheena applauding and cheering. In the end, that's what prompted him to move. Letting go of Lila's hand, he moved towards the front of the stage, slowly climbing the stairs to reach the stage floor. The lights were bright and he lifted a hand slightly, trying to block out the spotlight so he didn't stumble as he came up the stairs._

 _He was Prom King. How in the hell did that happen? He didn't even know he was in the running. And while he understood that it was obvious that Rhonda would win the nomination for Prom Queen, he thought sure that either Grant Grissom or Daniel Sutter would've won the nomination for Prom King._

 _Rhonda stood at the middle of the stage, her head held high, applauding lightly. Her eyes had a mixture of amusement and curiosity as he approached her and took her hand. Her lips curled up in a smile when the crown was placed on his head. She leaned towards him, her shoulder pressing against his._

" _Turn around and wave." She instructed quietly and he did as he was told, still in a haze of disbelief. From the dance floor below him, he could see his classmate, some that he went to school with for years. Harold and Patty were clapping, he spotted Eugene and Sheena closer to the stage, cheering for him. He tried to look for Lila but he couldn't find her anywhere in the crowd._

 _Another tug on his arm and he looked back to Rhonda. The smile was still on her face._

" _Come on, we have to dance."_

 _This jolted him back to his senses. Nodding, he took her arm and led her back down the stairs and into the empty part of the dance floor cleared for the Prom King and Queen's dance. Pulling her around and into his arms, they began to dance._

" _You look a little shell-shocked." She said, her voice easy to hear this close to her. He shrugged._

" _I didn't even know I was nominated. Color me surprised when they called my name."_

" _Why should you be surprised? You're popular Arnold, everyone likes you. Enjoy it."_

" _I guess."_

 _They were quiet for a moment before Rhonda spoke again. "Have you…have you seen Tad this evening?"_

 _He shook his head. "Was he going to come? I haven't seen Gerald either."_

 _There was a flash of disappointment that was quickly gone replaced by a coy smile. "I don't think your girlfriend is too thrilled with your nomination."_

 _Arnold looked over to his right and spotted Lila off to the side, her eyes flashing and her arms folded over her chest._

" _Either that or she's not too thrilled over you having this celebratory dance with me."_

 _He looked back at Rhonda; her strapless ball length plum dress fitting perfectly, her hair artistically curled in a half up do, her make up flawless. He smiled knowingly._

" _I think she's just surprised, neither of us were expecting this."_

" _If you say so."_

 _They dance quietly for a moment before the tell-tale smile returned to Rhonda's lips._

" _I didn't see Helga around here anywhere."_

 _The calm expression left Arnold's face. "This isn't really her kind of party."_

 _Rhonda tilted her head slightly. "Whatever happened between you two?"_

" _Nothing. We…just went our separate ways."_

 _They danced in a circle and from her vantage point, Rhonda could see Lila almost seething with rage. To prove a point, she slid her hand further up Arnold's shoulder and flashed a very obvious dare._

" _Shame. She was always your balance."_

" _Can we just dance please?"_

 _Her eyes slid from Lila back to Arnold and she fluttered her lashes._

" _Whatever you say Arnold."_

* * *

"Okay, this is two days of this," Alyssa set her tray onto the table with a clatter, startling Ronnie out of her book. Alyssa put her hands on the table and leveled her gaze at Ronnie. "Did you two get into a fight?"

Ronnie pushed her glasses up her nose, feeling a little like a five-year-old who got caught in a lie. She hadn't talked to anyone over the last twenty-four hours other than Lyss, Izzy, Anne and Allen. The latter two had cornered her after dropping off the former two and made her tell them everything that happened. Yesterday she was still mad and even after she talked to Anne and Allen about it, her pride still wouldn't let her apologize. She'd even fought with Allen and Anne over it for a bit. Logically she understood now that if anyone was going to get mad it was her mom. But she kept going back and forth on it. It was her high school life being portrayed, not Ronnie's. But knowing that it was her mom's life she was watching on a weekly basis still upset her. It didn't stop her from remaining friends with Allen and Anne though. Which, in itself, was kind of hypocritical of her. If she wasn't mad at the two people who played her mother and Tad, then why was she still mad at one of her best friends, who didn't know anything about it until they reached Hollywood and after that, did everything she could to block her from the truth.

She'd never had a big fight with any of her friends. Alyssa and Isabella had a knock down drag out fight complete with hair pulling and scratching when they were all seven. There were even punches thrown. Daphne and Alyssa had gotten into a screaming match once when they were eleven. But the only thing that resulted from that was hurt feelings, thirty minutes of silence for both of them and ice cream. This was her first huge fight and she wasn't sure how to fix it, or if it was even hers to fix first.

"Maybe. Yeah."

Alyssa and Isabella shared a perplexed look. "Over what? You never fight."

"You're the most easygoing person we know," Izzy added.

"I…kind of flew off the handle regarding something my mom and her dad are going through."

Alyssa leaned forward on the table, eyes alight at potential gossip. "They aren't dating, are they? I thought Uncle Arnold was dating Hel."

Isabella gave her a look. "Why does your mind always go there?"

"No! Ewww. Would you stop with that tired rumor? No, I got into a fight with my mom the other day and then fought Daphne about it. I…was wrong. I just don't know how to fix it."

"You could try apologizing." Isabella said as Alyssa sat back discouraged at the lack of gossip and knowing that Ronnie wasn't going to give her any more than she already had.

"I'm not sure if she would even let me apologize. She's really mad at me, not that I blame her."

"Look," Isabella said. "If there's one thing I know about fighting with Daphne is she may be hot-tempered-"

"It's the hair," Isabella said. "Gingers are always hot tempered."

"As I was saying." Alyssa stuck out her tongue before continuing. "Daphne may get mad fast and dish it out as well if not better than she can take it but it all blows over relatively quickly. Chances are, she still thinks you're mad at her, which could explain why she's giving us these lame excuses of finishing a project before the end of this week. Because we all know it doesn't take Daphne two days to finish a project. And even if it does, she's not missing lunch."

Isabella nodded in agreement, popping a fry into her mouth. Ronnie sighed, pulling her slice of pizza towards her. "Maybe I'll try to call her tonight."

Alyssa nodded, twisting the cap off her water. "Do, because I miss her sarcastic comments at lunch."

* * *

 **Got your number from Rhonda. I'm off today, meet me for lunch. 1pm. Vine Street Diner. Don't be late!**

Helga walked into the Vine Street Diner exactly at one. Because, even now, when Patty Berman nee Smith demanded you do something, you did it.

She spotted Patty almost immediately sitting in a booth in the corner and walked over to her, sliding in the booth seat opposite her.

"Right on time." She joked. Patty raised an eyebrow.

"Because you know better than to be late." She warned.

She picked up her menu and scanned the items.

"So what did you want to talk about that my presence was demanded?"

The waitress came over and the two women gave their orders, Patty waiting until the server left before she spoke.

"You looked pretty upset yesterday even with seeing your family again. I don't pretend to know what happened to you after…well Homecoming, mostly because I was dealing with the Harold, Sid and Stinky drama and then the aftermath of Sid's overdose and I knew you had Tad and Gerald, of all people, looking out for you. I understood that leaving Hillwood was something you had to do for your own mental health. But color me surprised when Arnold told me that you two were reunited in Hollywood and had been long distance dating for a year."

Helga had sat back in the booth while Patty was talking, arms crossed over her chest, silently listening.

"Not that I disapprove. Hell, if I'd known earlier I'd have thrown a damn party. I've wanted to punch the hell out of Lila since our Junior year."

"I remember."

"I know you do. Nice work, by the way, on Stephanie. I like her."

Helga paled but didn't say a word.

"I didn't have enough time to watch the entire four seasons, mind you, but your comment at the bar-b-que got me to thinking. So, I wiki-ed the series and found some clips on you tube. And if that wasn't enough, I perused through a fan chat group. By the way, the locker room scene from Season four has over forty million views. And I'll admit, it was pretty damn spot on, Pataki."

"You going to kick my ass now?"

"For what? Taking your therapy to prime time? Who's going to know? Chances are very slim that anyone in our graduating class is going to watch that show of their own accord and if they did, it's not going to be any of the PS118 group. From what I saw in the couple of clips I watched, it was all done respectfully. Hypothetically, of course."

Helga lips twitched upward.

"I don't care about that. I just want you to know that I know. What I care about is what this trip back home is doing to you. I got your number from Rhonda, like I said, because when I happened upon you yesterday, I don't think seeing your family is what made you so upset. So, tell me what's wrong."

Helga chewed on her lower lip for a moment before dropping her arms from her chest. "Like I told Tad, it's like the minute I set foot in this town every insecurity I've ever had just came rushing back threefold. I've second guessed everything I've done regarding Arnold since I've been here and if I manage to not freak out about for five whole minutes and just enjoy the fact that we're…together, it's like something in this town doesn't ever want me to be happy." She chewed at a thumbnail. "I'm the outsider here. Los Angeles is my home now. And no matter how much I've never gotten over Arnold, he has a life before me. He has a daughter and an ex-wife and family and a job and all of that stuff takes precedence over me."

Patty frowned. The server brought over their lunch and she nodded her thanks, waiting until they'd left again before continuing.

"Who said that? Has Arnold said anything?"

Helga fixed her with a look.

"Patty, it's Arnold. When is he ever going to say anything disparaging? But right now, the most important thing in Arnold's life is Daphne and rightly so. I can't make him choose. Seeing Bob and Olga's kids yesterday just verified that I no longer belong here."

"Let's talk about your utterly pointless family in a minute and get back to Arnold and Daphne. I love that child like she was my own. She doesn't have a hateful bone in her body, she's more like her Dad that way. That said, she's also a seventeen-year-old girl. Everything's a drama. You never take daily outbursts seriously unless they're directed at you personally or there's something very sinister in the outburst. From what Isabella was saying the other day, two of the actors from your show are in town and hanging out with Ronnie. Maybe that has something to do with the whatever Daphne may or may not have said, I don't know."

"Tad mentioned the other night that Anne and Allen might have spilled the beans regarding just who they played on the show."

Patty snickered. "You know, that just makes the scene Ronnie was in funnier. But chances are, that's the source of the outburst. I don't know. Let me just say that Arnold's been in a much different mood for the last year, a better mood. I thought it was because he finally got Lila to sign off on the divorce papers but now I have a sneaking suspicion it was you. Now for the tough love; you are the worst person for yourself. You've always been the hardest on yourself, you've always been your worst enemy. And you're doing it again. If it's meant to happen and has been happening for a year, let it happen girl. Quit inventing reasons on why this isn't going to work. You've finally got what you wanted, quit sabotaging it, Pataki."

Helga nodded slowly. "It's harder than it sounds."

"I know. But seriously, start trying. Because if this goes south, you won't have anyone to blame this time but yourself."

"Wow," Helga sniffed and picked up a fry. "I should've just had you pick up on Phoebe's tough love when she left."

"I learned from the best." Patty took a bite of her chicken salad. "Now, about your family."

Helga groaned, falling back against the back of the booth. "Dear God, I could spend a day ranting on everything I felt last night."

Patty grinned. "I've got a couple of hours. Start with the utter indignation of them not even recognizing you and then I'll tell you about your sister's so called perfect family." She took another bite. "Although, from what I've heard, you'd probably like the middle daughter Ella. According to Isabella, who's had classes with her, she's a lot like you; not interested in high school hierarchy, loves reading and writing, has no affection for her family."

"Hmmm. Sounds like in another world we would've gotten along wonderfully."

* * *

She had to eat crow.

She wasn't sure what crow tasted like, but in this instance, she was sure she wasn't going to enjoy it. She'd told Anne and Allen that she needed to take the bus home that day after school and she'd call them later. She wanted to be home when her mother got home to apologize and how that went would gage how much begging she'd have to do for Daphne's forgiveness.

The first step in eating crow was fixing dinner. Or at least attempting to.

She opened the windows and the back door, coughing at the smoke that was billowing out of the oven. The smoke alarm was shrieking and she was turning on all the fans in the house and using a cookie sheet to try to wave the smoke from the alarm so it would just shut up.

It always looked so easy when Mrs. Davenport did it.

She didn't hear the front door open over the smoke alarm but she did hear her mother's frantic voice.

"What is going on in here? Tad shut that off, would you?"

Rhonda came rushing into the kitchen coughing through the smoke and turned on the overhead stove vents. The room suddenly went quieter and Ronnie looked over through the coughing to see Tad removing the batteries from the smoke alarm. He disappeared again as her mother swung the back door back and forth to try to fan out some of the smoke. Tad returned with two fans and turned them on, angling them towards the back door. Finally, the smoke cleared, leaving three people still coughing in the kitchen.

"What happened?" Rhonda asked, still coughing.

"I tried to make dinner." Ronnie explained through coughs. Tad walked over to the oven and opened the door. Smoke poured out again and grabbing an oven mitt, he pulled out a cookie sheet full of blackened lumps.

"Whatever this was, I think it's beyond saving." He shut the oven door and picked up the clean cookie sheet to wave towards the oven. Rhonda looked at her daughter.

"Veronica, what are you doing, trying to burn down the house?"

"No!" she was near tears. "I was trying to make dinner. Mrs. Davenport makes it look so easy and I wanted to make dinner for an apology for being so mean to you and I forgot that I put the biscuits in the oven while I was trying to figure out how to defrost the turkey breasts and the next thing I knew there was smoke all over the place and the smoke alarm was going off."

"You were trying to make dinner?" Rhonda looked over at Tad who lifted the tray of blackened lumps to show her. "Sweetie, you can't cook oatmeal. Why would you try something as adventurous as turkey and biscuits?"

"I was trying to apologize," she repeated, still in tears. Rhonda strode to her, wrapping her in her arms.

"Oh sweetheart,"

Ronnie wrapped her arms around her mother's waist, burying her face into her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry Mom. I didn't mean all of those things I said yesterday."

Tad motioned towards the door but she shook her head, still hugging her daughter.

"Baby. Yes, you did. But it's okay. We all say mean hurtful things when we're mad, that's why we say them, because we know it'll hurt the other person." She pulled her away and looked down at her, one hand lifting to brush away pieces of hair that were in her face.

"I was a bitch in high school. And yes, Tad was my jester. And yes, I probably used him way more than I should have."

Still leaning against the counter, Tad wrinkled his nose and shook his head.

"Yes, Hel and Tad made a show allegedly loosely based on our high school lives and while some of the things in the show happened, a lot of it didn't. And a lot of it was much worse than portrayed. But the show is not an accurate portrayal of me; you would have hated me in high school, I was much worse. And you couldn't have possibly said anything to me that day that I haven't said to myself these past couple of weeks. So, I forgive you sweetheart, but there's really nothing to forgive. All I ask is that you move past this. It's just a show."

Ronnie sniffed, nodding.  
Waiting until the moment was over, Tad clapped his hands together. "Welp, dinner's a wash. How about we grab something out. My treat."

Ronnie turned in her mother's arms, completely forgetting that she'd heard Tad's voice during the uproar.

"Tad, I'm so sorry…"

He held up a hand. "Nope, nothing to apologize for. It wasn't directed at me therefore you don't owe me anything. However, there are two moping kids at my temporary abode who are still upset because they think they started a huge fight between friends."

"Can we go over there, so I can apologize to them?"

Tad looked at Rhonda questioningly. She nodded.

"Sure. But food first. I have got to get the smell of charcoaled biscuits out of my nose."

* * *

The house was silent. Hel was typing at the big living room table, her focus on the screen before her. On the other side of table Anne was skimming through websites looking at dresses. Allen was half reclining in the open living room, flipping through his phone.

"Blue. How about blue?" Anne asked.

"Meh, I think it would wash her out." Allen answered.

"Pink?"

"No." Allen and Hel said together. Anne looked between them both.

"Jeez, bite my head off."

"There will be no cannibalism in this house." Tad announced as he walked in. Ronnie walked in behind him, her head down and behind her…  
Allen and Anne looked up in unison and grinned at the older woman who shut the door behind her.

"Family meeting?" Allen teased.

"Tad, how much of a chance do you think we have to get Paul Rudd to guest star in the season premiere-oh." Her voice trailed as she raised her head and spotted both Ronnie and Rhonda in the dining area. "What's going on?"

"Veronica has asked to come over and apologize for acting like a brat." Rhonda stated. The teen stepped forward, pushing up her glasses.

"I'm sorry for what I said the other day. It was inappropriate and I was angry."

Allen was the first to hurry to her, arms extended. "Gumdrop, I'm just glad you aren't mad at us!"

Hel looked at the girl for a moment before shrugging. "You have a right to be upset regarding what you found out. Arnold and Daphne went through the same thing. But if you want to be mad, be mad at me. I'm the one who came up with the original idea for Ever After, Tad thought it was clever and helped but the original idea was mine."

"It's just weird knowing that your favorite show is based on your mom's life."

"Loosely based," Rhonda corrected.

"You know who had the same thought?" Hel asked. "Daphne. Who had this realization last year and didn't want to tell you because she didn't want you to be hurt. It was cruel to blame her for not telling you. And it hurt her feelings."

Allen snickered as he hugged Ronnie. "That's the most Mom thing you've said in a year. When's the wedding again."

She glared at him. "I can ground you."

"I know and I'm going to talk to her too. If she ever answers my calls again. But I'm still sorry."

"Apology accepted," Anne announced before anyone else could speak. "Now, come here and tell me which one of these you like. Allen seems to think blue and pink are right out."

"Well that was anti-climactic." Rhonda said. Tad shrugged.

"Not everything is season finale material. As to you," he pointed at Hel. "The chance is slim to none. Get over this Paul Rudd fetish you have."

"Never," Allen announced, dramatically.

Anne grinned at Rhonda who was walking towards the table. "The one bond that Allen and Hel share is their mutual love for Paul Rudd."

"He's the perfect boyfriend material." Allen let go of Ronnie and leaned over Anne's other shoulder.

"He's kind, he's laid back, he's loyal. He never gives up on his girl," Hel rattled off the list while still typing. Tad grinned.

"He'd never run around and desert you."

The typing stopped and Helga turned around in her chair to glare at her partner. "Did you just rick roll me?"

Tad just grinned.

"Did something happen between you and Arnold?" Rhonda asked. Beside her, Ronnie was looking at the website Anne had up. Hel turned back around in her seat.

"What? No. No, we're fine. Okay, what are you two doing over there?" The last statement was made to Ronnie and Anne as both a diversionary tactic and a general question. Both girls looked up.

"Anne's looking at dresses."

"Anne's looking at dresses for Ronnie," Anne clarified. "Allen has decided that he's taking you to the Homecoming Dance."

Four people stared in stunned silence at the dark-haired actress.

"Do what?" Tad asked.

"I told you that wasn't necessary," Ronnie insisted. Allen slid his arms back around her waist, pulling her into a quick backwards hug.

"And I told you gumdrop, that we were totally going the dance and you were going to get to show off your incredibly hot actor boyfriend."

"Excuse me, what?" Rhonda asked.

"We're not really dating, Mom, don't panic," Ronnie said. "Allen just thinks he's cute."

"Gumdrop, I am adorable." He dropped a kiss on the top of her head and let her go to lean over Anne's shoulder.

Helga looked up at Rhonda, who had a hand on her chest, and grinned. "Karma, Princess. It's a bitch."

Allen pointed at the screen. "I like that one."

Ronnie glanced over and blanched. "That one is being held up by sheer force of will. Will I don't have! And I hate lilac."

"Go with red." Tad suggested. "The Wellington-Lloyd's have always looked ravishing in red."

Rhonda shot him a glance before walking towards the group of kids. "Let me look. If there's one thing I do know it's how to make a fashion splash in this town."

Hel looked up at Tad who was leaning over her chair reading what she'd written so far.

"So, am I babysitting?" she asked quietly. Tad's eyes cut up to the four on the other side of the table and then back to Hel.

"There is a meeting I'm taking Rhon to. If you don't mind?"

"Not like its hard work."

He frowned, nudging her shoulder. "Is everything okay with you and Arnold?"

She nodded. "We're fine. I'm just trying to give him some space."

"Did he ask for this space?"

"He needs to figure out what he wants, Tad. Without me around. And I need to finish these script ideas."

Knowing better than to argue with her now, he merely dropped a kiss on the top of her head and squeezed her shoulders, letting her know he was there if she needed him. She absently patted his hand and went back to typing on the lap top. Tad clapped his hands and rubbed them together.

"Now, if you'll excuse us, the lovely Ms. Wellington-Lloyd and I have an appointment."

Three heads popped up at his announcement, Rhonda turned her head to look at him.

"We do?"

"Yep. And we're going to be late if we don't leave now."

"Where are you going?"

"What time do you expect to be home?"

"This is still really weird."

"Ha, ha." He pointed at Allen. "None of your business." He pointed to Anne. "You are not my mother and don't you even dare think about calling her." He pointed to Ronnie last. "Sorry dear, another week and we're out of your hair for good. But in the meantime, call your best friend."

Rhonda was picking up her purse and looking questioningly towards Helga. The blonde shrugged.

"You got me, I have no idea where he's taking you. "

Her gaze turned towards Tad, who was spinning his key chain on his finger.

"Not telling, it's a surprise. You ready?"

"I guess." She turned back to Ronnie. "I'll be home by no later than ten. Make sure you're home by nine."

"Well that's hardly fair."

"Talk to me about fair when you're eighteen."

"The kids will be fine," Helga joked, her arms folded on the table in front of her laptop. "Have fun."

"I'm still not sure about this," Rhonda said as Tad whisked her out of the house. The door closed and the room fell silent.

"Did we ever decide on a dress?" Anne finally said after a few moments, breaking the silence.

"The red one on the last page." Allen answered. "I want to see if Tad's right about Ronnie looking like a goddess in red."

Ronnie blushed as Anne clicked the button. "Cut it out, I'm still uncomfortable with all of this." She pulled out her phone and sighed. "I really should call Daphne. To apologize and I have a feeling she's the only one who understands what I'm going through right now."

"Sweet, we'll grab her on our way to the nearest coffee shop." Allen said.

"Hillwood doesn't have a coffee shop." Helga remarked. Allen and Anne stopped, looking at Helga like they didn't understand.

"All towns have a coffee shop, that's just silly."

"Hel's right," Ronnie said. "Hillwood doesn't have a coffee place. We have Slaussen's but that's about it."

"That is just un-American," Allen announced.

"But, ice cream." Ronnie insisted. "And their hot chocolate is really good."

He gave a long-suffering sigh, tugging Anne out of the chair. "Fine. Call Daphne, apologize and then tell her to get dressed. Apparently, we're going for ice cream."

"Um…our friendship doesn't work like that," Ronnie said, as Anne picked up her purse. "In fact, we've never really had a huge fight so I'm not sure how this is going to work."

"You'll call her and she'll still be mad for all of three seconds and the minute you say you're sorry, it'll all be forgotten." Helga said as she resumed her typing. "If she's anything like her father, that's exactly how it'll turn out."

"Call on your way to the car." Anne said, a hand on the younger girl's back as they walked towards the door.

"Have them both back home by nine!" Helga yelled as the three headed towards the door.

"Yes mom!" Allen yelled back. "Oh hey, Mr. Shortman, we're stealing your daughter just as soon as Ronnie apologizes."

"Huh?"

Helga shot to her feet but the front door was already shut. She hurried around the corner the same time as Arnold and they ran into each other. She stumbled backward and he reached out to grab her by the waist before she fell.

"How are we always running into each other?" he asked.

"What are you doing here?" she asked at the same time.

He let go of her waist and rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. "I haven't heard a peep from you in almost forty-eight hours. No calls, no texts. Which I know isn't a long time for other relationships but we only have a limited amount of time. It's like you disappeared off the face of the planet only I know you hadn't because I saw Tad this morning."

"Jeez football head, are you checking up on me?"

"Yes." His answer was so honest, she faltered momentarily.

"Well…knock it off. I'm a grown woman, I've been taking care of myself for my whole life, I don't need you to make sure I'm eating my breakfast."

"What the hell?" He followed her into the dining room. "Where did that come from?"

"You checked, I'm alive. You can go home now."

"Hold on, why are you so angry?"

"I'm not angry Arnoldo, I'm just annoyed that you're treating me like your daughter."

"I…what? Stop for one minute, would ya?" He reached out and took ahold of her arm. She stopped, shrugging off his grip and crossing her arms.

"What?"

"First, I want to know why you're trying to pick a fight. If there's anything I've learned about you, it's the fact that you pick fights when you don't want to face something. When you want to deflect something, you start an argument."

"You don't know me, Arnold, you just think you do."

"I do know you and I've known that little fact since we were in fourth grade. I just never said anything to you about it and the few times you made me forget were just that, me responding because I had issues I didn't want to face either and arguing with you was just easier." He folded his own arms across his chest. "So, why are you picking a fight?"

"I told you, I'm not picking a-"

He waved her off. "Yeah, yeah, fine, then why haven't I seen you in two days. And don't pick up that old rant of my being your parent. I don't want to be your parent; I want to be the man who loves you and therefore sometimes gets to call when he misses you."

She glared at him before finally sighing. "Dammit, I hate when you do that."

"What, tell the truth?"

"Shut up."

"Tell me why I haven't seen you in two days." he asked, his tone softening. "In fact you were supposed to come by on Tuesday and you never…" he trailed off, staring at her for a moment. "You did stop by, didn't you? You heard Daphne."

Her arms tightened across her chest as if ready to ward off a blow. "She's right, you'd have a normal life if it weren't for that stupid contest. It's done nothing but mess up everyone's lives."

"That's why you've disappeared for the last two days?"

"You should always choose your daughter Arnold. Nobody should make you have to choose, least of all me. I'm just giving you the space you need to come to that decision."

He sighed again, his arms dropping to his sides. "So you're breaking up with me because you think my daughter is making me choose sides?"

"I'm not breaking up with you, that makes us sound twelve. I'm…letting you go."

"No."

She frowned. "What do you mean, no?"

"No is a complete sentence, what part of it don't you get? First, you don't get to choose my decisions for me Helga Pataki, not anymore. Quit letting me go, because this time you're going to have a fight on your hands. I'm not letting you go, I'm not letting you break up with me because you think it's the noble thing to do, I'm not feeling particularly noble right now." He stalked towards her. "This is a joint decision, and you're misplaced martyrism isn't going to cut it this time. So, no, I'm not letting you break up with me."

"You can't just…" He took her hands and tugged her towards him.

"I can just. I love you. Had you stuck around for thirty more seconds, you'd have heard me tell Daphne that it wasn't your fault her best friend got mad at her. She kept it from Ronnie because she didn't want her to get hurt. I got angry when I found out, she got angry when she found out and Ronnie was allowed to get angry when she found out. We both got over it and Ronnie will get over it too, mostly because I honestly don't think Rhonda is going to allow her to remain angry. She and Tad seem to be working out pretty well and I don't see Rhonda allowing anyone to take that from her." He jerked his head towards the closed front door. "From what I saw, it looks as if she's already gotten over it, especially if there's talk of taking Daphne along with them. I'm guessing that's what Allen was talking about when they passed me on the doorstep."

"She was calling Daphne to apologize and then they were heading to Slaussen's. Unless plans change."

He slid a finger across her chin to tilt her head up. "I'm going to say this again. And I'll keep saying it until it finally gets through that damn stubborn brain of yours and then I'll say it a couple more times just in case you forget; I love you Helga G. Pataki. I love you and I want to be where you are, I don't care where that it. I don't care how that is. If you want to retire today and spend the rest of your life living in a hut on a deserted island, all I'm going to ask is when are we leaving. If you want to travel the world for a year, I'll go update my passport and call my parents because sometime during that trip we're more than likely going to run into them. The only stipulation I am asking for is whatever we do, you please wait another eleven months until Daphne graduates high school and I get her into the college of her choice. After that, I'm all yours." He wrinkled his nose. "I'm yours now, just…I won't be involved in the full-time upkeep of a dependent."

She stared at him, blinking as if she couldn't understand what he was saying.

"You…you want…what about your job?"

"I can get a job anywhere. I have a Doctorate in anthropological studies. I can get a job in any University in a heartbeat. Except the deserted island, but I'm sure I can find something."

"Are you kidding me?"

"Dead serious Pataki."

"So what if I said I wanted to continue working in Hollywood."

"I'd ask if I'm moving in with you or if you wanted to look for a new place. And if I am moving in with you, is Tad going to be okay with another person living in the house. Because, honestly, your place sounds amazing."

"What if I said I wanted to get married?"

"I'd ask if you really wanted to get married or if you're testing me to see if I'll freak out. If you do, pick a day. If not, I will happily live in sin with you."

His comment was so unexpected that she forgot she was trying to stay mad at him. She broke, laughing at the ridiculousness of his statement.

"God, you're a goof! I don't even know what to say to that."

"You're going to say that you're not going to break up with me and that everything I just said sounds nice." He pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms around her. "You're going to say, I love you Arnold and moving to LA in a year sounds like a great idea."

She looked up at him, any trace of anger and annoyance gone. "Yes Arnold. I love you and you moving to LA in a year sounds like a great idea."

His eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Really."

He smiled happily, lowering his head to kiss her.

"What about the marriage question?" he murmured against her lips.

"We'll talk about that after you move in."

"Whatever you say, Helga," His lips covered hers.

* * *

 **AN:** I want to say thank you to Pointy Objects for part of this chapter and the opening of next week's chapter. We messaged back and forth a lot while I was posting Ever After and I discovered her long term love of Paul Rudd. Which, in turn, turned what was supposed to be a one off into Helga's long term love of Paul Rudd. Which, oddly, fits almost perfectly with the Helga in this series. So yeah, thanks Pointy. :)


	17. Chapter 17

**AN:** Sorry for the delay on this chapter. And again, Pointy, this first part is all you. :)

* * *

" _You have no plans for this weekend?" Tad asked as they walked down the second floor hallway on their way to class._

" _None. I plan on hiding in my room and watching_ _Clueless_ _. I have no desire to attend yet another one of the princess' Friday night parties. What is this one: spring rite?"_

" _Cute. It's March, hardly spring yet. And I didn't say you had to go. But Hel, sitting in your room watching Paul Rudd play in an incestuous relationship with his sister-"_

" _Excuse me, not his sister. They don't even have the same parents. Char's dad just unofficially adopted him when he dated Josh's mom."_

" _The fact that you can just tell me that off the top of your head tells me you've watched that movie five time too many already."_

 _Hel adjusted her satchel and gave Tad a weak glare. "I identify with Char."_

" _Wrong." He twirled a finger towards her. "There is nothing about you that identifies with Char. If anything, you identify a hundred times more with Kat from_ _10 Things I Hate About You_ _than you ever will with Char. The only difference is Heath Ledger versus Paul Rudd. In fact, Kat pretty much is you, Hel."_

" _Paul Rudd is more approachable than Heath Ledger." She gave Tad another dirty look when his sudden cough sounded suspiciously like "safer". "He's the perfect guy; he's approachable, he's laid back, he knows how to treat women, he's loyal. What's there not to love about Paul Rudd?"_

" _Because getting the high school marching band to serenade you with a rendition of "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You" isn't romantic as hell? Wait…why am I arguing romantic qualities of fictional characters with you?"_

 _She smiled at him, a real smile this time, something he hadn't seen on her in a while. "As if." She teased, her hand on the door to the girls' bathroom. "Give me a minute."_

" _Hurry up Kat, I don't want to be late."_

" _Ha. Ha." She pushed through the door and headed towards the row of stalls. Three steps in and something yellow on the floor at the end of the large room caught her attention. Two more steps toward sit and she froze, her palms sweaty and her blood running cold. Dropping her satchel, she ran towards the person laying on the floor, grabbing her up and rolling her over, desperately looking for injuries._

 _Nadine lay limp in her lap, her breathing shallow. Vivid images hit her hard and she began to shake._

" _Wake up. Nadine. Wake up! Tad!" She screamed. "Tad! Tad! Tad!"_

 _The bathroom door slammed open and Tad came running into the girls' bathroom at full tilt. He skidded to a stop, his face paling when he saw Helga on the floor with the unconscious body of Nadine in her lap. He turned to the first girl who stepped into the bathroom to yell at him. "Get a teacher now! Get the nurse!"_

 _He rushed towards the two, dropping to his knees and gently taking Nadine's prone body from Helga. The blonde immediately crab walked away from both of them, not stopping until her back hit a wall. He looked down at the unconscious teen in his arms aware at how light she felt. He put a hand just above her mouth and felt soft puffs of air against it._

" _Nadi, cricket can you hear me?" he asked. The only response he received was a soft, weak moan. He took it with relief. He lifted the sleeve of her long sleeve shirt and was horrified to see bones protruding from her wrists. "Oh cricket, what are you doing?"_

 _The door opened again and Ms. Taylor, the honors English teacher rushed in followed by the nurse and the assistant principal.  
"Is she…" Ms. Taylor asked. Tad nodded and looked at the nurse. _

" _We're gonna need an ambulance."_

" _N…o ambu…lance." Nadine moaned softly from Tad's arms. He looked back down at her._

" _Not listening Nadine, we need to get you to the nurse."_

" _No."_

" _Cricket, I will carry you there myself, I don't care."_

 _Mr. Sullivan, the assistant principal stepped forward. "I can take her Mr. Gumblethorpe."_

 _Nadine's eyes slit open and she swatted weakly towards the man. "Go away. I…I'm fine. Just got a…little dizzy."_

" _Probably because you haven't eaten in months." Tad remarked. He got a better hold on the skinny girl and climbed to his feet. "Listen to your jester, Cricket, we're going to the Nurse's office."_

 _He looked over at Helga, who was still sitting pressed against the wall, staring with wide eyes at the spot where he was just sitting. "Helga."_

 _Her eyes shot up jerkily towards him, her face still pale. He gave her a gentle smile._

" _I need you to come to the Nurse's office with me, can you get up? Nadine's fine, Hel, she just can't walk."_

" _The student needs to get to her class," Mr. Sullivan began. The nurse put a hand on his arm._

" _She has diagnosed PTSD; she needs to come to the office with us." She crossed the bathroom and picked up Helga's satchel. "Come along Ms. Pataki, I'll walk with you."_

 _Helga looked up at the nurse. She climbed to shaky feet and allowed the nurse to wrap an arm around her back as the group left the bathroom and made their way towards the Nurse's office to wait for the ambulance._

* * *

"I'm still not comfortable not knowing where you're taking me,"

Tad was driving away from the city, heading towards New York. Rhonda was fidgeting, alternately looking out the window and trying to catch Tad's eye as he drove. "You aren't taking me to your parents and I am hardly dressed for anything in New York."

Tad glanced at her apparel; purple leggings and a purple and crème paisley top.

"You look beautiful as usual, goddess. And we aren't going anywhere fancy."

"Then why won't you tell me where we're going?"

"I will. The closer we get to New York."

"Thaddeus…" she warned. He spared her another glance and reached over to take a hand.

"Rhon, do you trust me?" he asked. "Do you trust that I would never put you in an uncomfortable situation or do anything to make you upset?"

Her brow furrowed, partially distracted by his thumb stroking against her hand.

"I…of course." She answered honestly, because the truth was, she'd always trusted Tad. She trusted him throughout her entire high school career, more than she trusted anyone else. No matter what she'd always felt safe when she was around him. But that was then and this was now and the silly thing about all of this was that even now, over twenty years after they'd graduated and he'd walked out of her life, even now after only spending the last week or so with him, she still trusted him implicitly.

"Yes. I do. But that doesn't mean I still don't want to know where you're taking me."

"Good."

He didn't let go of her hand, his thumb still gently stroking her skin as they drove towards the city. Rhonda leaned back in to the seat and watched the road go by, strangely comforted by his hand in hers.

She never believed in love at first sight. It was a fairy tale sold to little girls to make them think that their prince was just around the corner. Princes weren't real, they didn't come in on white horses and sweep their one true love off their feet and take them to a castle; even if she'd fallen in to that belief at one time. After the fairy tale was over and reality set in, one could usually see the flaws of the so-called prince, the castle was usually just a front, hiding all the cracks and rot behind it. Her romance with Dashiel had cured her of anything resembling love at first sight. So why did sitting here in a car that smelled comfortingly of sandalwood and leather with a man who was making her stomach do flips with each gentle swipe of his thumb, how after nine days of being around him suddenly make her feel as if everything she believed in after Dashiell was completely wrong?

"I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you spending this entire trip trying to convince me to turn around and go home." Tad suddenly said. Rhonda brushed away her thoughts and saw they were on the George Washington Bridge.

"We're heading to an organic tea shop called Sereni-tea to meet up with Nadine."

Rhonda stared at him. "Na…Tad, no. I can't. I told you about our last meeting and what a spectacularly awkward failure it was. Why would you try for a part two?"

"Because Nadine texted me a couple of days ago and I told her I was in town. We got to talking and she told me about seeing you. We talked some more and she's the one who suggested it." He glanced at her as he pulled off the bridge and into New York traffic. "Come on Rhon, I did hear you talk about your meeting. And I heard your voice when you talked about it. You two need this meeting; just like Hel needed to see Arnold again and you and I needed to have this. You two sit down, drink tea, talk and then either you'll shake hands and part or you get your best friend back. Isn't it worth an hour or two just to find out?"

She sighed in defeat. "I hate that you're suddenly so rational."

He grinned, "Goddess, I've always been the rational one."

"So where is this place anyway?" She was trying to distract herself from the nervousness in her stomach.

"It's in Mid-town around Chelsea. All I know about it is it's an organic tea shop with a holistic store in the back. In fact, the reason they're open late today is there's a reiki class in the back." He grinned. "Oh, and I think it's owned by Sheena, but don't quote me."

She groaned softly, digging her hands through her hair. His grin widened.

"Well, that was just sexy."

"Not helping Tad."

He pulled around a corner and pulled into a small parking area close to an old refurbished building. The sign on the front was an old restored wooden sign with calligraphy letters. The entire store front looked historic. Tad turned off the car and got out, crossing in front of the car to help Rhonda out.

"I don't know, I kind of like it. It fits in this neighborhood."

There were three floor to ceiling wide windows that showed inside the shop, covered with drape curtains tied back. Rhonda smoothed her shirt and her hair nervously, not fully ready for this meeting. Tad took her hand and lifted it to his lips.

"It's going to be fine." He promised.

Taking one last deep breath, she followed him into the shop, her hand still in his. The door opened to a bell tinkling about them and they stepped in. She spotted Nadine almost immediately. The woman sat in at a circular table towards the back, turned away from the door and speaking to a brunette woman in a paisley broom skirt and peasant blouse that looked positively boho and completely in fashion with this neighborhood. Both women looked towards the door when the bell tinkled. Tad, in usual fashion, smiled widely, giving Rhonda's hand a squeeze before letting go and flinging his arms wide.

"You look ravishing! How is it that after all of these years, you are still gorgeous?"

Nadine's face brightened, an excited smile on her face. "Me? What the hell happened to you? And can I convince you to move back here and marry me?"

"Alas, cricket, my heart belongs to Hollywood." He swept her up in a hug, dropping a chaste kiss on her laughing mouth. The brunette beside her was smiling in surprise also.  
"Thaddeus? Is that really you?"

He turned from Nadine to look at the other woman, his smile still in place. "Sheena? Come here, you beautiful woman!"

One hand left Nadine's waist to sweep over Sheena's shoulder and pull her into a hug which the woman went into laughingly. Rhonda stood a little away, watching the reunion and feeling a little jealous; both that Tad was so good at ice breaking and that she no longer was able to sweep into a room like that.

Nadine's smiled faded fractionally when she looked over Tad's shoulder at Rhonda.

"Hi Rhonda."

Rhonda managed a nervous smile as Sheena released Tad and looked over curiously.

"Hi Nadine. Hello Sheena. You have an amazing place here."

Sheena's smile was both welcoming and genuine. "Thank you. You look great Rhonda."

She walked over and enveloped Rhonda in a hug that was both comforting and quick.

"What can I get you both?"

"I am entirely at your mercy, Sheena." Tad said, pulling out a chair and looking at Rhonda. She smiled as she took the chair and felt Tad's hand squeeze reassuringly on her shoulder. He took the chair next to Nadine. "What do you recommend?"

"The citrus melody tea is quite good," Nadine suggested.

"That sounds delicious." Tad said.

"I'll bring out two more cups and another pot."

Sheena scurried to the back and Nadine looked at Rhonda.

"How have you been?" she asked. Rhonda froze, her eyes wide. She had no idea what to say to the woman who'd been her best friend since pre-school. She and Nadine had been inseparable; like Helga and Phoebe, the only difference was their last year of High School Rhonda had forgotten about Nadine, choosing instead the shallow acquaintances of high school popularity. A real best friend would have known that she was in a co-dependent relationship with a mentally unstable kid, a real best friend would have known that she was anorexic. A real best friend would have supported her instead of ignoring her silent cries for help. A real best friend would have been there when she needed her the most, not found out about it days later through the school gossip vine.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. She cleared her throat and started again. "I'm sorry Nadine. I'm so sorry."

Nadine and Tad shared a look but Rhonda continued. "I was horrible. I was a horrible person, an even worst friend and I am so sorry I wasn't there when you needed me the most. I should've been there, I should've known."

"Rhonda…" Nadine started.

"I don't expect you to ever forgive me, I don't deserve it, but I hope you can find it to accept my sincere apologies."

"I'm going to go help Sheena with the cups," Tad said, standing up. He gave both women a quick look and hurried towards the back of the shop, calling out to Sheena as he went.

Nadine hesitated, rubbing the spot above her nose before answering.

"He is an amazing man."

Rhonda said nothing, waiting for her to continue. Nadine looked out the window for a moment before continuing.

"I hated you for a long time. I hated everyone for a long time. It took years of therapy for me to realize that in actuality I didn't hate anyone but myself. It was the stressors I put on myself; being the popular one, the pretty one, the skinny one. I felt my life was so out of control during that time that not eating was the only way I could control something." She turned back to Rhonda. "I can't forgive you Rhonda, because there's nothing to forgive. I'll accept your apology but even with that, we were all so conditioned by high school and what we were supposed to do and to be that I'm surprised as many got out as they did. I never told anyone about what I was doing, save Brian, and I made sure that nobody could see the effects of my disease. I made it very hard for anyone to know that I needed help. And at the time, even though now I know it was incredibly co-dependent, Brian helped me. He made it easier to make it day to day, he also made it easier to progress my disease because he helped with the hiding. We were not good for each other but at the time, I felt he was the only one who understood." She gave a humorless smile. "When I went into the hospital, my parents were upset but they were more disappointed. Which didn't help with the recovery, I pulled out my feeding tube twice before they locked my hands down."

"You don't have to explain anything to me," Rhonda insisted. "I don't want you to feel as if you need to bring up painful things for me."

"I'm not. I'm very open regarding my illness, but I'm telling you this for a reason. While I was in the hospital Tad came and visited me. He was the only one. And he was not kind. Nor was I. We got into a screaming match in the hospital that almost brought in Security. I accused him of some horrible things and he fought back. But he said one thing to me that just hit me sideways. He said "Nadi, I love you but you aren't perfect. You don't have to be; you just have to be you. I do not want to think back on you in ten years with the word _was_ in my thoughts." As stupid as it was, that was the thing that made me realize that I needed help."

"He mentioned you guys corresponded while you were in rehab, and everyone knew that Helga and he were the ones that found you in the bathroom. But that's all I knew, and again, I should've known more."

"You had your own demons to deal with." She leaned forward. "Tad may be a bit unorthodox but he is truly an amazing person. I hope you understand that."

Rhonda's first reaction was indignation, of course she understood how amazing Tad was, she'd always known. She looked down at her hands, tightly entangled. I seemed it was time for her story.

"I was two years into college when I met this man at a party my parents took me to. Dashiell Montague. He was tall and debonair and rich, everything I thought I wanted in a man. We went through a whirlwind romance and were married on the Rivera a year after we met. Every night was lavish parties, jet setting to Mulan for fashion shows, overnight trips in Paris, weekends on a private island. Everything I thought I wanted. And then I got pregnant and at first I railed against it because how was I ever going to find cute clothes and drink champagne when I looked like a whale. Dashiell was excited at first, thinking he could have a child as a fashion accessory, all the nouveau rich were doing it. And then Veronica was born," she smiled, remembering the first time she saw her daughter. "I took one look at her and suddenly overnight trips to Paris and all night parties meant nothing to me. I was happiest when I was feeding her mashed carrots and watching her try to identify whether or not she approved of them. Dashiell couldn't understand why I wouldn't hire a nanny and be done with it. It just got worse as Ronnie got older. She hated parties and fashion and was most comfortable when she was in a chair at home reading. She was seven when Dashiell finally told me he wanted a divorce. But by that time we weren't seeing much of him anyway. He and I made an agreement, he could have everything as long as I got Ronnie and he paid child support and put a college fund in her name. He agreed, I moved back to Hillwood and it's been Ronnie and I ever since."

Nadine frowned. "That doesn't sound like you at all."

Rhonda shrugged as Sheena and Tad returned with the tea. "Things change, sometimes drastically and for the better."

"Okay, now Sheena swears by these, but I'm not sure." He put a plate of flat cookies on the table and sat down. "I mean; I've eaten some unusual things but honey sesame wafers haven't seemed to reach the West Coast yet."

Nadine picked up a wafer and dunked it into her tea. "No, honestly, it sounds weird but they're really good."

"I offered to cleanse Tad's aura for him," Sheena said as she poured a cup of tea and slid it towards Rhonda. "That way you two can talk without his comments if you were comfortable with that."

He gave a cocky smirk and folded his arms over his chest. "Please, I know you just want to check out my aura."

The brunette simply rolled her eyes. "Your smooth talking doesn't faze me honey, I live with gay men who are on Broadway."

Tad just laughed. "You win. If you two lovely ladies can do without me for a bit, I'm going to let Sheena manipulate my aura for old times' sake."

Nadine rolled her eyes. "I'm sure we'll survive for a little while."

He took a drink of his tea and leaned over to drop a kiss on her cheek before standing up. "You'll be crying before I'm even gone."

Nadine watched as Tad brushed his fingers against Rhonda's hand before following Sheena towards the back. Her gaze didn't waver as Rhonda caught her looking as she sipped her tea. "What?"

"How long has this been going on?"

"What?"

"You and Tad. Just because we aren't besties anymore doesn't mean I don't remember how you work Rhonda. Tad would never touch you without your permission, unless it was to help you up or to assist in some way. That covert hand brush thing didn't get by me."  
She blushed, putting down her tea cup. "Not long," she admitted. "It sounds ridiculous when I say it out loud but he's only been in town for almost three weeks. I ran into him at the grocery store his first week here, and in fact, the day I ran into you was the first time we actually sat down and talked."

"That was the beginning of last week."

"It's been a busy two weeks."

Nadine grinned. "How busy?"

Rhonda blinked. "I don't understand."

The look Nadine gave her was just an older version of the one she used to give in high school when she silently called her out on her evasive answers. Rhonda blushed again and Nadine grinned in triumph, leaning forward again.

"You've slept with him, haven't you?" she half whispered across the table.

"Maybe. Is it relevant?"

"Hell yes it's relevant. And grown up me wants all the juicy details." She rubbed her hands together and leaned in. "Is he good? Was it worth it?"

Rhonda looked at her for a moment, debating on whether or not to say anything. Finally, she gave in and leaned in across the table. "Yes. And yes."

Nadine's grin threatened to split her face as she bounced lightly on the chair, fist pumping surreptitiously.

"Yes. I knew it. You caught feelings."

"What? No, I didn't?"

"You did!" she insisted shaking a finger towards her. "Because a, you would never just sleep with Tad…"

"I almost slept with him in high school."

"You were drunk off your ass and he turned you down flat. And b, you've slept with him more than once."

"What? How do you even know that?"

"It is all over your face. And his. It's ridiculous, anyone who knows either of you would know in seconds. I'm willing to bet Helga knew the minute she saw him." Her eyes lit up. "Speaking of Helga, please tell me she's in town and she and Arnold have gotten together."

Rhonda grinned. "Actually, they met in LA when his daughter won a contest. They've been together for a little over a year now."

Nadine fist pumped again. "Yes! In that soulless ginger's face!"

Rhonda laughed. It felt good to be sitting and sharing gossip with Nadine again. She'd forgotten how much she had missed this.

Nadine sat back in her chair. "Oh, my aura is going to need cleansing again after this but that was so worth it." She took a deep breath and let it out in a whoosh. "Now, between you and me, how do you feel about Tad? And yes I'm going to pry because Tad has been my rock for so long and even now he keeps track of me, so the thought of him getting hurt is not my favorite thing, even though I know he's a stubborn-ass grown man. He refuses to fall for anyone, preferring to keep it casual."

"Okay…" She wasn't sure where Nadine was going with this.

"I'm telling you this because with you, he could never do casual. And I don't know how you feel about him, but I know he's going to go back to LA, it's in his blood now. Are you okay with just hitting it and quitting it? Because I don't think either of you are."

"I don't know," She answered honestly. "Part of me thought in the beginning that it would be a one-time thing, get it out of my system and move on. But these past ten days have been just…He took me to the Avenue."

"Oh crap."

"I know! He's been…it's been…"

"You've caught feelings." Nadine confirmed. Rhonda nodded.

"Oh yeah. Bad."

"Well, you're going to need to figure out what you want and what you're willing to do to get it once you decide." They both leaned back when they heard a door open and Tad's voice from behind the curtain. The curtain was pulled back and he and Sheena walked out.

"…oddly, I do feel lighter. That's just weird."

"It may sound weird but I'm telling you it works."

"You live in California," Nadine said as they approached. "How is it you've never had your aura cleansed?"

"I live in LA cricket, the closest thing we get to regulating flow out there are micro-biotic enemas. And until recently, I was lucky I had time to eat much less get anything cleansed. Not counting our five minute showers to save on water." He pulled out the fourth chair and waved towards Sheena. "Have a seat beautiful, catch up with us."

"Please do," Rhonda insisted. "I'm curious as to why you decided to open this place."

"And I'm more than a little curious to know how Eugene is doing?" Tad finished. Sheena smiled and took a seat.

"I can spare a little time before the class ends."

* * *

It was dark when they left the tea shop, indulging in final goodbyes, exchanging of phone numbers and promises to keep in touch. Rhonda was practically beaming as they walked out into the cool night air. Tad watched her practically skipping down the street. He had watched her in the shop, drinking cup after cup of tea as she came alive again; she, Nadine and Sheena talking and laughing like they hadn't lost touch for twenty years. And in one clear moment he'd realized that he still had feelings for the raven haired woman, no matter what he'd done over the years after they'd left Hillwood for LA, no matter how many women he'd dated casually trying to replace her in his heart, that it hadn't worked. He was just as lost as Hel. The only difference was she had never denied her decades long love for a man she never thought she'd have, he in turn, buried that feeling deep inside him, trying to cover it up with casual relationships and erase it from his heart. And here, in a historic tea shop in the middle of Chelsea, it reemerged complete with heart stuttering realization reminding him that he could never bury what he felt for her.

He'd love to blame the aura cleansing.

They were almost at the car when she spun around and threw her arms around his neck. He took a hold of her waist to balance her, one eyebrow cocked.

"Thank you so much for making me do this." She gushed. "I'd been thinking about her more over the last couple of years but there's no way I would have ever had the courage to do something like this." She lifted on her toes and kissed him and for one moment he could see them in his mind's eye; on the lit sidewalk in New York locked in a passionate kiss, uncaring of the traffic passing them or the people walking by on their way home or wherever they were going. Total romantic movie moment. When she let go, she was still smiling happily. He clicked the key fob to unlock the car. She spun back around to open the car door.

"It's just one of the little things I love about you, your intuitive knowledge to understand exactly what I need."

He stood frozen on the sidewalk as she slid into the car and shut the car door. Had she just said she loved him? Or was it more of a rhetorical love? His heart slammed against his chest, his hands got sweaty and for one moment he was the Tad in high school; desperately in love with the one woman he knew he would never have. He was not going to be that person again. He couldn't. Taking a deep breath, he erased any telling features from his face, falling back on years of training of how to be what people wanted to see.

* * *

He dropped a tired Rhonda off at her house, where she left him with a kiss and a yawn filled promise to call him the next morning. After making sure she made into the house safely, he drove as fast as he possibly could back to his place. They'd been in this town for too long, his mother was mostly able to move around now anyway and he would pay for a nurse if he had to, but they had to leave soon.

He pulled into the driveway, ignoring the other rental that was now parked, shut off the car and strode into the house. Helga was coming around the corner with a mug of tea, stopping short when she saw him. Without words, she put down the mug on the nearest table and met him as he crossed the foyer.

"We need to leave soon." Was all he said.

"What happened?"

"We've been here way too long and I know you're enjoying your time here but Mom's better now, she doesn't need me anymore and honestly, I'd like to get back to LA…"

"Thaddeus." His name stopped him in his tracks. He turned around to look at her, still frustrated and angry. She didn't say a word, just patiently watched him. They stared at each other for a moment, neither talking until he finally broke, his shoulders sagging.

"I can't," he whispered. She strode across the open area and pulled him into her arms, hugging him tightly. His arms went around her, holding her to him.

"I could use some strength, Athena," he whispered against her shoulder.

"You have it." She promised. "Tell me what you want to do."

He took a deep breath, the smell of vanilla tickling his nose. "Do we have anyone to maim or horribly massacre at the moment?"

She laughed as she released him. "I think we can find someone deserving to kill."

"Where are the kids?" She was his strength, they held each other up. Right now, he was glad she was there.

"Upstairs. They came home about ten and passed straight out." Helga shook her head. "Damn, that sounded almost domestic."

He laughed with her. "I'm going to grab a yahoo and meet you in the dining room in a minute."

She watched him walk into the kitchen with a frown. Something had happened that night. Something that shook him. She picked up her mug and walked back into the dining room where their laptops were set up making a mental note to see if she could drag out some of what happened that night.

* * *

"I checked the lease. Our time is almost up." She said the next morning over a cup of coffee. The two were sitting in the kitchen enjoying the quiet before the two kids they had living with them woke up for the day with loud noises and laughter. Tad looked at her over his tablet, the tired look in his eyes telling her he hadn't gotten much sleep last night after they'd wrapped up a scene.

"How much longer do we have?"

"About eight days, give or take a day."

"How much is it going to cost us to break it early?"

She studied him over her mug. "How early?"

He shrugged. "Tomorrow? Two days from now?"

"Not much. But Allen and Anne are here at least until Sunday night, Monday morning at the latest. Do you really want them running around Hillwood for five days alone?"

His lips curled upward in distaste. "No. Dammit."

"You going to tell me what happened last night?"

"Nothing, I'm just missing the bright lights and fast pace of Hollywood."

She smiled. "Liar. You might as well talk about it."

"Hel, my love, we are the king and queen of avoidance."

"Good point." She took another sip of her coffee. "But you have to talk to her soon. If I remember anything regarding this town it that avoidance doesn't work here, sooner or later it's all going to come to a head."

"Is it wrong to hope that we're gone before that happens?"

"Not at all. It's completely unrealistic, but you're not wrong to hope."

"You are a barrel of sunshine today; you know that?"

Hel gave him another grin before finishing her coffee. Tad watched her until she raised an eyebrow in question.

"So. Are we ever going to talk about the future?"

She gave him an odd look. "How far into the future are we talking? Next month future? Next year future? Or what we're doing when and if we finally decide to retire future?"

He decided blunt would have to be it. "Are you staying in Hillwood?"

"Oh God no!"

The violence of her rebuttal caught him off guard. "Okay…"

"Why would you even think that?"

He gave a half shrug. "Things are going well here. You have Arnold, you're happy, his family and daughter are here."

"Well that's just a sexist way to look at things Thaddeus, I'm disappointed in you." She continued over his outraged protests. "I love what I do, I love the life I've made in LA and there is no way I'm giving it up to move back to a town that was dying when I was growing up in it. Actually, Arnold and I did talk about it last night and he is willing to move to California. It just won't be until next summer after Daphne goes to college."

"Oh." He honestly didn't believe that Hel would ever leave LA but to tell the truth, he didn't see Arnold ever leaving Hillwood. "What about the house?"

"Our house? I'm not giving up the house. That's our sanctuary." Her lips twisted in thought. "But, you're right, this is something we should talk about. Do you mind having a third body in the house?"

He blinked. No part of this conversation was going in any direction he expected. "You…you still want me to live there?"

"Tad, it's your house. We both signed the lease. Why would you think that just because Arnold is willing to move to LA that I would kick you out?"

"I just assumed we'd sell the place and go our separate ways."

"Never. Unless that's something we both agree on together. Tad, I love you. You have been my rock, my port in the storm for as long as I have been adrift. There is never any way I would make a decision like this without discussing it with you first. Any decisions we made and will make have always and will continue to be a joint decision between us. And if you're okay with a third roommate, then when it comes up in conversation later this year, I'll suggest he move in with us."

Tad chuckled, shaking his head. "See Hel, it's things like this that are the reason I adore you. The one thing you've wanted most since you were three and it doesn't even cross your mind to just kick me out when you finally get it. Instead, you're making sure that I'm okay with living arrangements before you even talk to Arnold." He pointed a finger towards her. "This is what everyone misses about you, you're unswerving loyalty to anyone you deem worthy. All anyone sees at first glance is your hard shell, your take-no-shit-from-anyone attitude and your utter lack of willingness to give a shit. Only the ones you deem worthy know that underneath all of that, you're really a big softy."

"I will kick you out of this house now." She deadpanned.

"But baby, you looove me." He crooned teasingly.


	18. Chapter 18

" _You know," Arnold said with a wry grin. "You're supposed to be my best friend."_

 _He and Gerald were walking towards the lunch room, Arnold with his usual bagged lunch and Gerald having to get into line to find something to eat. Gerald gave him a look as they entered the cafeteria._

" _Did something happen between this morning and now that I missed?"_

" _No, it's just…I asked you about Prom like a week ago, and you haven't told me what you're wearing or anything."_

" _I just assumed you'd take Lila," Gerald smirked. "I'm not really your type dude."_

 _Arnold punched his shoulder. "Man, shut up. You know what I mean."_

" _Let me get lunch and we'll continue this conversation."_

 _He was back within a relatively short time, the lunch line still being short. To be fair, they'd both managed to skip out of their classes before the signal sounded making them reach the cafeteria relatively early. Gerald dropped his pizza and fries on the table and popped open his soda as he lounged in the chair next to Arnold._

" _I really hate Trig," he complained before shoving a couple of fries into his mouth._

" _No, no changing the subject," Arnold pulled his sandwich from its wrap and peeked at the contents under the bread. "We're going to talk about Prom."_

 _Gerald sighed. "Look, Arnold. The truth is I'm not really sure that I'm even…"_

" _Did you hear?" Lila almost fell into her seat, her face positively gleeful. Which Gerald knew was never a good sign. "Nadine passed out in the upstairs girl's bathroom yesterday. They had to call an ambulance, honestly I don't know how they managed to keep it as quiet as they did, I mean, I just found out this morning."_

 _Arnold frowned. "That's horrible. Is she okay?"_

" _Apparently, she's anorexic, passed out from not eating."_

 _Gerald's frown matched Arnold's but for different reasons. Where Arnold was truly worried for Nadine at the moment, Gerald was just aghast at the amount of glee Lila was taking for this telling. He couldn't understand how Arnold didn't see it._

" _I…I didn't know." Arnold said._

" _Nobody did, that's what's so…" Lila paused for a moment, catching her next work which Gerald just knew was going to something like great or amazing or funny. "Tragic about this. Rhonda is probably horrified."_

 _Gerald's mouth twisted. Again, not the word she would've used around other company. He turned in his chair to find the raven-haired fashionista to see if she'd heard the news yet. He'd noticed that Rhonda hadn't been spending as much time with Nadine recently, but to be fair, a lot of things had changed with the coming of the new year. He couldn't find her anywhere, even though he spotted several of the girls she usually had lunch with._

" _Who found her?"_

 _Again, Lila's eyes lit up but then she stopped. "Um…I don't know, some student or something. But can you believe it?"_

 _It was odd how well he could tell when Lila was lying. She knew who found Nadine, he could tell that much by her demeanor. Which meant that if she didn't want to tell Arnold, then there was only one person it could be. Pushing his plate away he stood up, catching Arnold and Lila's attention._

" _Where are you going?" Arnold asked. Gerald looked at Lila as if to tell her I know you know and I know what you're doing._

" _Gotta meet someone, I'll be back."_

 _He hurried away from the table and out of the cafeteria knowing he wouldn't be back for lunch. He had to find two people._

* * *

"What time is this meeting?" Tad asked putting his Yahoo bottle onto the dining room table. Helga walked through the kitchen a mug of coffee in her hand.  
"Three pm West Coast time."

"What's that here? Six?"

Hel nodded, sipping her drink. "About twenty minutes from now."

Tad glanced at the clock, the expression in his face changing from bored to surprise. "Crap! Glad I wasn't planning on going anywhere."

Hel eyed him shiftily. "Where you planning on going somewhere?"

"Not anymore. Is this a professional meeting or can I get away with jeans and tee shirt?"

"It's a casual meeting, just an update with Aaron Kritchner to see where we are with the Hallow'een episode and right after with Ian Murphy regarding Last Breath."

"Hallow'een is coming up," Tad said as he pulled out the chair next to her and sitting down. "Are we just doing the writing for the Urban Legends episode and hoping the producers will do it right or are we co-producing the episode?"

"The plan was to co-produce the episode. Of course, that depends on how much longer we're out here."

"As far as I'm concerned, out work here is done." Tad said, leaning back in his chair. "We can leave any time we want, barring the kids."

"So…" The word was drug out slowly. Tad turned his head to look at her, one eyebrow raised in question. "You've talked to Rhonda then?"

She knew the look he gave her, the innocent confusion on his face as if he truly didn't understand what she was speaking of. She'd seen him use it on many other people when he was bluffing, it was his poker face.

"Why would I have talked to Rhonda?" On cue, his eyes widened just a fraction as if he just now understood what she was insinuating. It didn't fool her one bit. "Oh you mean because we've spent time together while I was here? Oh no, that was just some fun. We've only been here about a month Hel, I haven't had time to do much of anything except taking care of my mom."

She gave him a steady, dry look clearly insinuating that she didn't believe a bit of what he was saying. The skype call rang before she could call him out on it. Giving him one last dry look, she connected the call and turned her attention to the screen.

On the other side, the image of a burly man in black glasses smiled pleasantly back at them.  
"Afternoon Hel, Tad. How's the East Coast?"

"Afternoon Aaron." Tad responded. "Tell me you're taking care of LA for us."

The burly man laughed. "It's been warm and dry as usual. When are you two heading back?"

"Soon. Do we still have plans to work on the Halloween episode?"

"As long as you're back next week. We're going to start production next week. Maggie is coming back to LA, she's excited, by the way."

"I'm excited also." Tad leaned towards the screen. "Cat is one of my favorite characters, I'm excited we finally get to give her closure."

"You do know there's going to be a small group of fans that are going to throw a fit," Aaron said. Tad grinned.

"And a small group of fans that are going to love you for this. The same fans that's been watching faithfully hoping for scraps. We're finally giving their characters the closure they've been asking for. Aaron my friend, you're going to have die-hard fans for life once this episode airs, trust us."

Aaron looked skeptical. "You're lucky I do trust you guys. So, can you get here by next week?"

"We can get home by next weekend and be ready for work on day one of production."

"Great. Shoot me a text when you two make it back to LA."

"Can do, Aaron. We'll see you next week."

Tad cut the feed and leaned back, grinning at Hel.

"We're back home in a week, back on set and back in control."

"Ian should be calling in soon." Helga took a drink from her cup and wrote something onto the notebook sitting next to her. She pulled out another file and scribbled something else down. "I have the majority the plot ideas written down, which should appease Ian, plus the rough drafts of episodes we've worked on."

"He's going to love it." Tad said. "It's exactly what he loves and the idea for this series are going to be exactly what he envisioned."

The skype call rang again and Tad answered it as they both heard the sound of the front door opening. Ian Murphy appeared on the screen, all smiles and easy demeanor.

"Hel! Tad! How are my two favorite people? I hear it's cold on the other side of the continent."

"It's fall Ian." Tad answered, equally easy demeanor and smiles. "Something us people from the land of eternal summer aren't used to."

Both men laughed as Anne and Allen appeared in the hallway. Hel leaned out of the line of sight of the webcam to hold a finger to her lips towards the two. Her eyes widened and she smiled when Arnold appeared in the hallway behind them. He waved, catching her silent motion to keep quiet and motioned that he'd be in the living room when she was finished. She gave a quick nod and slid back into view of the camera as Ian and Tad were beginning to the upcoming season.

"Did you know Hel and Tad were doing a season of Last Breath?" Anne asked. She Allen and Arnold were all sitting in the living room silently listening to the conversation between Tad and Ian over skype, will Hel occasionally throwing in a comment or two.

"Is it always like this?" he asked, after what he thought was a particularly fake round of chuckles.

"All the time." Allen answered. "This is Hollywood negotiation tactics and there's no one better at negotiations than Tad. And no," he addressed Anne's question. "I had no idea they were doing anything outside the rumors that Aaron Kritchener asked them to do the Halloween episode."

"Oh yeah," Anne quietly cheered. "Talk about going back to their roots. I wonder if they'll get to hire the cast?"

"I think Urban Legends already has a cast."

"No," She shot him a look. "For Last Breath. I know Ian Murphy likes to use the same people for his seasons but this is Hel and Tad, they're going to want control of at least ninety percent of the casting and production."

"I wonder what their idea is? You think we can get them to tell us?"

Anne snorted. "Good luck."

Arnold frowned as he tried to listen to the conversation. "Do you know when they're planning on leaving?"

"There was talks of maybe this week sometime?" Allen answered. "I think they wanted to leave earlier and we messed that plan all to hell."

His frown deepened. Granted, they'd both been busy with their own projects and for the last couple of nights had only been able to do nothing more than shoot of a couple of text messages back and forth before he'd passed out asleep. It was one of the reasons he was here now, he was missing her and figured maybe they could get dinner. He understood that she had to leave more than likely soon, but now that the plan was cemented as more than likely, he found himself missing her already.

* * *

It was the Thursday before Homecoming.

Daphne had almost finished the scrapbook and presentation for next year and was planning in delivering the final product to Ms. H tomorrow during her period in the library. She only had to put the final touches on it and, of course, Allen, Anne and Ronnie wanted to see it.

"Okay, we've waited long enough," Allen was almost bouncing on the balls of his feet, not even waiting until they got into the house. "Show me show me show me!"

Daphne stepped into the house, a large scrapbook clutched tightly in her arms as she deflected Allen's grabby hands.

"Stop it! I'll show you in a minute. I worked too hard on this and I don't want it ruined."

He stopped bouncing long enough to pout. "I would never ruin it. I just want to see it."

"As do we all," Anne patted his shoulder as she passed. "But if you don't give the girl some breathing space you're never going to see it."

"I have to admit, I'm curious about this too." Ronnie shut the door behind her and hurried to catch up with the other three heading towards the dining room table. "I know you were being vague about this project the last couple of weeks and I want to see what you did."

"Explain to me again why we're doing this here?" Anne asked. Daphne placed the scrapbook gently on the table, her hands laying gently over the cover.

"Because Tad is at his parents or at a meeting and Hel is probably at my house. I wanted a place that was safe from prying eyes and right now, I reason this is the best place to do this."

Allen half knelt in one of the chairs, his forearms leaning against the dining room table, leaning towards the scrapbook. "So what is it? Spill woman, you're driving me crazy!"

Daphne gave a sad smile and opened the scrapbook, turning it and pushing it towards the three curious faces.

"I give you the real Sophia."

Allen pulled the scrapbook closer towards them. The first page was the graduation program from the Class of 2005. As he flipped to the next page, Ronnie tugged the scrap book towards her.

"Her name was Phoebe. She was supposed to be Valedictorian for the Class of 2005. There was a school shooting during Homecoming Week of 2004 and she was listed as one of the three people shot and the only student who died that day."

"This really happened?" Anne's face paled. "Sophia was Phoebe?"

Allen flipped the pages that showed candid photos mixed with class photos. On one page, there was a picture of Phoebe with a tall boy. Ronnie smiled.  
"That's Gerald? How in the world did he get his hair that tall?"

Daphne laughed. "I know, right?"

Another page showed Phoebe in a group of students wearing lab coats.

"Ms. H is in that picture. She was part of the Young Scientists of America club. Phoebe was their chairperson. But here," She flipped the page to show Phoebe with a young blonde both making faces at the camera. "This is my favorite picture."

Anne leaned forward. "Is that Hel?"

"Yep."

The three sat in silence, going through the entire scrapbook.

"I kind of wish Izzy and Lyss knew the back story and wouldn't get freaked out, because they'd love some of these pictures." Ronnie said.

"This is just nuts." Anne said. "I mean, I knew Becky and Lana thought that some of the stories were based on things that might have happened in Hel and Tad's life but not all of it."

"According to my dad, it's not everything, but the major things pretty much happened."

"Well then who was Stan?" Allen asked as he flipped back through the book. "Or Xander and Naomi? Did they exist?"

"Everyone exists." Hel said behind them. The four shouted in shock, Ronnie and Allen almost falling out of their chairs. Hel walked into the dining room eyeing them. "All characters exist if enough people believe in them. What are you doing?"

"What are you doing here?" Daphne asked, clutching at her chest. Hel raised an eyebrow.

"Until Sunday, I live here."

"No, I mean, I thought you'd be at my house."

"Your father had a late meeting tonight, how do I know his schedule better than you?" She peered over Allen's shoulder at the scrapbook. Her face softened and she smiled, reaching a hand over his shoulder to flip a page of the book. "Where did you find this?"

"Daphne made it for Ms. H for next year's Homecoming." Ronnie said. Hel looked up at her.

"You did this?"

Daphne nodded. Allen moved out of the way as Hel flipped through more pages.

"This is amazing Daphne. It must have taken some time to track down all these pictures and articles."

"It took me about two weeks." Hel glanced up at her.

"You have a knack for research and detail. I know a dozen people in LA who would kill to have someone with your drive and ability." She flipped another page and smiled sadly. "If you come across another copy of this picture," she tapped the candid photo of the two girls on the bleachers. "I think I'd like a copy of it."

She closed the book and slid it back towards Daphne. "It's funny how time flies when you're not looking. Your dad should be picking me up in a few minutes, did you want to join us or are you hanging out with these yahoos?"

Daphne wrinkled her nose which Allen tried to look affronted. "No offense but you two hurt my teeth sometime."

A small half smile graced Hel face for only a moment. "Gerald says the same thing. Don't trash the house, I still have a rental deposit on it."

She patted Ronnie on the shoulder and walked back towards the kitchen. The four watched her disappear into the large room.

"I expected more anger," Anne whispered. Allen nodded.

"More something."

Ronnie shrugged. "Maybe she's finally come to terms with it?"

Daphne sighed. "How do you come to terms with something like that?"

Ronnie shrugged.

"I think it might be less coming to terms and more that she's finally accepted it." Anne said. She pulled the scrapbook towards her. "Let me see the rest of this. Hel's right, you do have a talent. You should really look into doing something like this after school."

Daphne smiled.

* * *

"You're quiet." Arnold took the moment while waiting at the red light to glance over at Helga. "Anything you want to talk about?"

She shrugged half-heartedly, looking out the window at the passing buildings. The light turned green and he continued driving.

"I hear you're leaving soon."

Helga turned away from the window. "I was going to tell you."

"When, five minutes before you left?"

"No. Tonight. Because until I said it out loud, it wouldn't be real to me and I could still pretend that I would wake up the next day and the next and be able to see you that day." She reached out a hand, gently brushing her fingers against his hand on the steering wheel. He moved his fingers to tangle with hers. "So yes, Arnold. Tad and I are leaving Sunday morning."  
He glanced over at her, startled. "That soon?"

"That soon. Tad wanted to leave last week but the kids got here just in time and with Allen taking Ronnie to Homecoming Saturday night and Tad feeling uncomfortable with leaving you guys to deal with those two, he agreed to stay until after Homecoming." She squeezed his hand. "I'm sorry. It was selfish on my part, as long as I didn't tell you it wasn't real."

"So we only have three nights left?"

Pulling his hand from hers, he slammed on the breaks and made a sharp left down a street. Helga gripped tightly onto the passenger side bar.

"What are you doing?" her voice, panicked and half shouting, not at all expecting the sharp turn or the sudden speed.

"We're going back to my house, ordering take out and spending the entire evening finalizing plans, talking or just doing nothing." His eyes were focused on the road. "We only have a limited amount of time together, Helga, with no idea when we'll see each other again. I am not about to waste any of that time on mini golf or crowded restaurants."

A smile slid across Helga's face but she didn't say a word, merely leaned back in the passenger seat and enjoyed the ride back to his house.

* * *

AN: I have multi fandoms. So, if anyone might be wondering, yes, Urban Legends is loosely based on one of the other fandoms I follow and yes, Cat is my freaking closure to one of my favorite characters being "offed" and nobody saying anything about it. I have issues man! and it seems they're crossing over into this fandom.


	19. Chapter 19

" _My dress has to be perfect." Lila insisted as she flipped through the racks. "This evening is going to be perfect so my dress just has to fit the occasion."_

 _Arnold lounged on a couch in the ship idly watching his girlfriend franticly moved through stacks of dressed._

" _You'll find the perfect dress Lila, you'll see. Please don't stress over it."_

" _Boys have it so easy, all you have to do is rent a tux. They need to make dress rentals for these occasions. It's silly to spend so much money on a thing you're only going to wear once." She flipped through another rack. Arnold smiled in pride at her as a sales lady approached them._

" _Do you need any help?"_

" _I don't, but she might. Jellybean, what exactly are you looking for?"_

" _Seafoam, strapless, perfect."_

" _I think we might have just the thing." The woman walked off in search for the perfect gown._

" _How about emerald? You've always looked good in emerald green. Plus, I'm not sure if they even carry seafoam ties and vests?"_

 _She moved through stacks before finally stopping dejectedly. "You might not have to if I can't find anything." She burst into tears and Arnold scrambled up off the couch to hurry across the room to comfort her. "I'm never going to find the perfect dress! Prom is going to be ruined!"_

" _Jellybean, don't panic, you're going to find the perfect dress and this isn't going to ruin anything. You'll see, we'll find something."_

 _Lila sniffed. "You're so sweet. You are the best boyfriend ever."_

 _He dropped a kiss on her forehead. "I'll help you look if that's okay?"_

 _Still sniffling, she looked up at him. "Will you?"_

 _He nodded. With another soft kiss on her upturned lips he let her go._

" _I'll look over here at these racks."_

" _I love you baby."_

" _Love you too."_

 _She watched him with a smile on her face until he was hidden behind the racks. Her smile disappeared just as the sales lady returned with a couple of dresses._

" _I found these, if you want to look through these."_

 _Lila whirled around, jabbing a finger at the dress on the top. "That is blue, not seafoam, take it back. Also, you're going to ignore everything he brings you and find me my perfect dress, am I clear?"_

 _The saleslady, startled by the sudden change in behavior of the young woman, stammered out a response, before Lila cut her off._

" _This Prom is going to be perfect and nothing is going to ruin it for me!"_

* * *

"Are you going to the dance?"

The milkshake stopped halfway to Daphne's moth and she looked over the rim of the glass to the person asking the question. Alyssa stared back, waiting on an answer and looking innocent as all hell.

However, since all four girls had known each other since childhood, Daphne waited for the girl to lower the boom. She didn't have to wait long.

Alyssa shrugged, a hint of a smirk on her lips.

"I mean, we're all going," she waved around the table at Slaussens they all sat at including Anne and Alan. "It's going to be boring sitting at home not to mention that if it is indeed Hel's las night here it's probably gonna get real uncomfortable at your house."

"Ugh!" Daphne put down her milkshake with a thud. "Lyss, I did not need that image in my brain!"

Alyssa just smiled.

"Just come with us." Isabella insisted. "It'll be fun! It's our last year, we might as well go out with a bang."

"I can be your date," Anne said. "I don't want to be left out of the fun."

Alan grinned, leaning over from his seat on the other side of Ronnie.

"Anne, you minx. I thought I was the adventurous one in our friendship."

"You can't have all the fun Alan," Anne teased. She looked back at Daphne. "So? What do you say? I mean, we all know Ronnie's going to blow the Homecoming Dance away with her "Can't Hardly Wait" entrance with Alan, but we could totally have some fun."

Daphne smiled at the raven-haired actress as she picked up her milkshake. "Yeah, okay. But that means I have to call my dad and find a dress in a little over twenty-four hours."

Alyssa fist pumped.

"Shopping trip! I'm sure your dad would give you the money."

Alan chuckled. "I'm sure Hel would give you the money." He grinned and one arm snaked around the back of Ronnie's chair, his fingers coming to rest ton her shoulder. Daphne was both impressed and curious at Ronnie's non-reaction to the move.

"Speaking of fun…"

"Well, isn't this unexpected."

Daphne and Isabella looked with identical sneers of distain as Dallas and her two friends approached their table.

"Not again. Did you completely miss out first conversation where we told you to go away?" Isabella asked, the look of disgust still on her face. "The clueless bitches table is over there."

Dallas ignored her, instead looking at Alan and Anne. "Hi. So we're wondering, the entire school, actually, why you've come to visit our lovely town. And to offer you both the services of actual tour guides who are so much more knowledgeable about Hillwood."

Alan was leaning over, close to Ronnie, whispering in her ear and the teen was grinning. Anne looked up at the three blondes and smiled pleasantly. Daphne hit a smile because she recognized that look. That was full out Brooke. Isabella and Alyssa must have recognized it also if the gleeful expressions on their face were any indication.

"Actually, we're here because we missed out very dear friends. And poor Alan and Ronnie hadn't seen each other in a year and I got tired of his moping." Her lips lifted in a smirk. "Honestly, we'd prefer to visit people we trust and know instead of sad hangers on who need the social boost. But thanks anyway."

Alyssa didn't even try to be subtle.

"Damn, dragged!"

Dallas had the nerve to look offended. "Wow. Just because you were in a show that ended last year, you think it's okay to be rude?"

"Oh that wasn't Anne being rude," Alan said, the arm still on Ronnie's shoulder tucking her closer to him. "You haven't' see Anne be rude yet. Right now, she's being perfectly polite considering we both know who you are; that insecure child who makes it her goal to bully someone not as outgoing to make herself feel special. Now, if you'll please remove yourselves, we're trying to enjoy a day out with our friends."

The blonde rolled her eyes amidst both Alyssa and Isabella's loud cackling and stormed off, her two friends behind her. Alyssa hooted in laughter.

"Girl, bye!"

"Damn!" Isabella laughed. "That was poetry. Ronnie, if you don't kiss him for that, I will!"

Ronnie blushed and Alan chuckled, giving her one last tug against him to drop a kiss on the top of her head before releasing her.

"That blush is everything." He looked back to Daphne with a gleam in his eye. "I believe we were discussing your dress?"

* * *

She'd done crap this entire month.

Rhonda checked her phone for the third time in an hour, frowning at the lack of messaged on her phone. Luckily this was the slow season at her job. Which made her multiple early work days and off days not really as bad as it could've been.

She sighed in frustration again, surfing between Pinterest and Instagram under the guise of looked at fashion blogs. In actuality, she'd found both Anne and Alan's social media profiles and had been creeping on them for the past couple of days. A Hollywood actor was taking her baby girl to Homecoming, she was entitled to creep on their social platforms.

She sighed again, giving up on the search and giving up completely or even pretending to do work and picked up her phone once more. She opened it up and texted another message.

 **I haven't heard from you in a couple of days. I miss you.**

She hadn't heard from Tad since he'd dropped her off after their trip to see Nadine. No calls, no visits, no texts…nothing.

She was confused. And annoyed. Mostly annoyed. Everything was great between them…or so she thought. She understood that he was leaving soon but surely he'd see her once more before he left to say goodbye, at least.

Wouldn't he?  
With another huff, she opened a new text window to Helga.

 **Testing.**

A few moments later her phone pinged letting her know she had a message. Ah, so her phone did work.

 **What are we testing?**

 **Whether or not my phone still works.**

 **Ah.**

 **Let me guess. Tad?**

So it wasn't just her. She felt a little relieved about that.

 **So it's not me. I know I'm being silly but what happened?**

 **I'll talk to him.**

That was it. Helga wasn't going to give her any more information, she'd been lucky the blonde had offered to talk to him instead of just telling her to deal with it herself.

Which was the problem. She wanted to deal with it. She wanted to go over to his house and break in the door and demand he talk to her. Demand that he explain exactly why he just up and left her with no calls, no texts, no hope. Dammit, who the hell did he think he was, he couldn't just breeze into Hillwood, romance her, and make her fall in lo-

Oh hell.

Oh. Hell!

A shaky hand covered her mouth as she swallowed hard, the realization of her thoughts sinking in.

"Shit," she whispered. This wasn't supposed to happen. Ever. She was supposed to be happy raising Ronnie until her daughter went away to college and then she was supposed to retire and maybe buy a cottage in the country. THIS was never supposed to have happened.

With shaking fingers, she snatched up her cell and pressed the number three on her speed dial. She needed to talk to someone who would understand.

The phone rang twice before it was connected.

"This is Arnold," the distracted voice answered.

"Help me," she whispered in a shaky voice. "So help me God, I think I'm in love with Thaddeus Gumblethorpe."

The line was silent for a moment before Arnold spoke again.

"Well it's about damn time."

* * *

"Daddy, I'm going to Homecoming and I need a dress."

Arnold barely had time to drop his keys and satchel by the door before Daphne confronted him.

"Um, hello to you too Kimba."

"Aunt Timberly and Lyss are on their way over to help me shop."

"Who are you going with?" he asked, still recovering from the fact that his daughter was suddenly pro-Homecoming. For the last three years all four girls had skipped out on both the Friday night football game and the Saturday night dance. Although he had some idea that this sudden change of heart had more to do with all her other three friends going than it did any long-supposed belief that Homecoming was "lame".

"Anne."

He blinked. He couldn't even say he was surprised. "Of course. How much is this dress going to cost me? Why can't I go?"

"Daddy!" Daphne whined and Arnold had to hide a grin. It was nice seeing his daughter act like the teenaged girl she actually was sometimes, even if said childish responses were directed towards him.

"You couldn't call your mom?" he continued to tease as he heard the front door open and voices from the outside. "You know she'll be devastated."

"That's just cruel Arnold." Timberly admonished as she stepped into the house followed by Alyssa who was grinning.

"Look who we found!" she announced, pushing the front door open further to let Helga and Anne in. Helga gave a wave.

"I hear Anne and Daphne are going to Homecoming."

Arnold nodded. "I just heard the same thing."

"Anne decided she wanted to tag along on the girl's trip, which I am definitely not going to be a part of. That and I think she needs a dress too."

Timberly grinned. "I don't remember you ever shopping Helga."

"Outside the basic, run in, get what I need and leave, no. But," She pulled out a pink and black polka dot wallet, plucked out a card and handed it to Timberly. "My treat."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Helga, no you don't have to-"

"Shut it football head. I hear Daphne wouldn't even be going if it weren't for my pain in the ass. I owe her and you." She looked at Daphne who stared at her wide-eyed. "If you're okay with it, then I insist."

Daphne grinned. "Do I have a credit limit?'

"Daphne!"

"Kidding! I'm kidding Dad!"

"Don't drop twenty grand on it."

"Helga!" he was rapidly losing ground here.

"Just give it back to Arnold when you drop Daphne off," she told Timberly before giving Anne a fierce but fond look. "I don't trust this one here with my card."

Anne scoffed. "Please, I have my own."

Timberly tucked the card into her purse. "Like you aren't going to still be here when the girls come back. Okay, ladies! Shops close at nine, let's move!"

"Four hours?" Anne whined as Timberly ushered the three young women out the door. "That isn't nearly enough time!"

The door shut behind them leaving Arnold and Helga alone.

"You didn't have to do that."

She waved him off. "I wanted to." Her look became pensive and she suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Unless…you don't think I'm trying to buy her, do you?"

With two quick steps, Arnold was wrapping Helga in an embrace that made her squeak in surprise.

"That thought never crossed my mind. I 'm just so proud of the person you've become. You amaze me every time I'm with you."

Helga blushed. "Knock it off football head."

He rubbed his face against her cheek, nuzzling her neck.

"What can I do to repay you?"

Her eyes fluttered shut her arms wrapping around his waist as she felt his lips against her neck.

"I can think of a few things if you were so inclined."

He smiled against her skin.

"Oh, I think I can be so inclined."

* * *

Rhonda's phone rang as she was heading home. Her daughter had texted her earlier to let her know that she, Izzy and Alan were going to the football game that night and would be home later. She had the house to herself and for once, she didn't want to go home.

She barely glanced at the number on her phone before she hit the hands free.

"This is Rhonda."

"Hey. It's Nadine."

The voice of her former best friend caught her off guard and her hands shook on the wheel. She grasp the wheel tighter.

"Um…hi Nadine."

"Is this a bad time?"

"No, not at all. I'm just trying to figure out what to do since I'm not keen on the idea of going home to an empty house tonight."

"Oh?" She could hear the curious tone in Nadine's voice. "Isn't…Veronica home?"

Rhonda smiled at the fact that Nadine had remembered Ronnie's name after one discussion. "No. She, Isabella and Alan went to the Homecoming game of all things."

"Isabella is Patty and Harold's oldest, isn't she?"

"Yeah."

"And no Tad?"

She had to swallow hard before she answered. "No. No Tad."

The car was silent for a moment before Nadine spoke again. "Listen, I'm on the Jersey side visiting my parents. A thirty-minute drive from Hillwood. Meet me at that bistro on the boardwalk just outside of town you used to love, okay?"

Rhonda frowned. "I don't want to put you out. I'm sure you have plans already…"

"My partner is out of town on a conference so I have the weekend to myself. And even after all of these years, I still know the tone of your voice when you're trying to play off something, Rhonda. I'll be there in about thirty minutes."


	20. Chapter 20

**_AN:_** **Warning for Eating disorders**

* * *

 _Nadine sat in a chair in the rehab facility nervously playing with her sleeve. It was ragged; the fabric frayed and strings poking from the sleeve cuff. She couldn't help but pull at the strings, knowing that if she kept it up the entire shirt would eventually fall to pieces. Sort of like her life. It was over, her carefully constructed life, her plans for college, her scholarships, her grades. Everything down the toilet like her lunch. Tears pricked at her eyes and she stubbornly wiped at her face. She wasn't going to cry, she was a pathetic creature and deserved everything that was happening to her. She couldn't even get skinny right; passing out in the bathroom like an amateur. The stress of Brian not being there to calm her hat taken its toll and she should have at least sucked on an orange or drank more water before she went to the bathroom, something to keep her stomach from cramping up. It was a classic beginner mistake and she deserved everything she got. Her position at school was gone, her best friend…or so she thought hadn't even stopped by to see her, hadn't called, nothing. Apparently, she wasn't as important to Rhonda as she once thought. Just one more thing that she ruined._

 _Her stomach cramped and she felt the familiar taste of bile rising in her throat. If she got out of this chair and ran to the bathroom, the nurses would know she was going to throw up and she'd be on restriction again. Another failure._

 _She could feel the taste in the back of her mouth and wondered what they would do if she just opened her mouth and hurled right here on their pretty and clean tile floors._

 _A hand touched the top of her head and she screamed, jumping out of the chair. The bile in her throat dissipated as adrenalin rushed through her veins. She spun around and Tad stood there, his hands held out in supplication._

" _Sorry! Sorry, I thought you herd me coming up behind you! I didn't mean to scare you."_

" _What are you doing here?" The words came out harsher than she intended but he either didn't seem to mind or didn't notice._

" _I missed you cricket." He held up a book bag and her nose wrinkled, terrified it would be food. "I brought homework. And a couple of card games, but that's for later. I figured you might want to help me with my biology?"_

" _Tad…" She started. She didn't want visitors, she just wanted to wallow in guilt and self-recrimination and hide under covers in her room. She didn't want to go to group, she didn't want to step on the scale, she didn't want to eat. She just wanted control back over her life._

" _I hate biology Nadine, please help me." He batted his dark eyes at her and she found herself giggling against her will._

" _Fine. But only because you look so pathetic."_

 _He grinned and waved a hand as if to indicate that he would follow wherever she led. She led him to the open meeting space, taking one of the empty tables. He dumped his bookbag onto the table and pulled out his textbook and notebook._

" _I await your genius."_

 _They worked on his homework for the better part of an hour and during that hour she realized she hadn't thought about her weight, her skin, her bones or food once. Instead her attention was entirely on the genetic biology homework that Tad insisted he needed help on._

" _You're good at this stuff Nadine," he said after they'd finished the homework. "You should think about doing this as a career."_

 _She snorted, folding her arms closer to her chest as old familiar fears began creeping back into her head. "I can't even survive high school, how am I supposed the handle the stress of college and a high productive jog like that?"_

" _Because you are stronger than you think you are." He reached across the table and clasp her hand. His skin was warm, heating her frozen fingers. "Nadine, you are one of the strongest people I know. This?" With his free hand, he waved around the large open room. "This is a pausing point; a rest stop in the story that is your life. This doesn't define you, high school doesn't define you being part of a clique doesn't define you and your eating disorder sure the hell doesn't define you. You define you. So, you're going to get better, get out of here, go to college and be the best damn bug scientist I'll ever know. In the meantime, you tell me what you need from me. What can I do for you? Because if I have to stop by here every week to be your jester or to have you help with my homework, say the work and I will be at your beck and call…well, as much as I can while you're here. Gotta work with visiting hours and all."_

 _Despite trying to be strong, she felt the tears prickled behind her eyelids again._

" _Why? I'm nothing? Why are you here saying these things?"_

 _His smile was honest and kind. "Because I love you Cricket. You're one of my best friends and I do not leave those I love alone when they need a rope and are just too damn stubborn to take it."_

* * *

The Purple Cow was a ridiculous name for a bistro and it was because of that exact reason it had been in business for over fifty years. That and it had the best sandwiches and homemade chips in the state. That it was on the boardwalk didn't hurt either.

Rhonda entered the bistro, blissfully inhaling the delicious smells of baking bread and cooking chips that permeated the shop. Since she was closer to the shop, she'd made it there first. She sat down at a table in the back, dropping her purse beside her and pulling out a menu. She hadn't bene to this place in months, with work and her daughter she just hadn't found the time. She ordered an Italian soda and pulled up her emails on her phone to pass the time.

The door to the shop opened about ten minutes later and Rhonda looked up from her phone. Nadine had just stepped in and was heading towards her.

"You look great!" Rhonda exclaimed as she approached the table. And she did. Dressed in ripped jeans and knee high boots with a layered purple plaid shirt, Nadine looked like she'd just stepped out of a magazine cover.

She pushed her tied back braids over her shoulder as she dropped her bag and collapsed into the opposite seat.

"Thanks. Just got back from visiting the parents. Dad likes to see if I'm still _doing okay"_ She finger quoted the last two words. "I have a Doctorate and work at a successful job and he still sees me as a child."

"It's the lot as parents to always see our children as our babies," Rhonda said. 'My parent's do the same to me. They freaked when I told them I was buying a house in Hillwood. I guess they expected Ronnie and I to live with them indefinitely."

A server came over and both women gave their orders.

"So, what happened?" Nadine asked when they were alone again. "Because honestly, I always thought you'd be the jet setting fashionista, marriage kids or no."

"Veronica happened. I can't explain it. The moment I first looked into her eyes I fell and in that moment, I knew that I would do whatever it took to make her happy. Suddenly going to Monaco twice a year and Fashion Week in Paris didn't seem all that exciting."

"Wow. Of all the things."

Rhonda laughed. "I know. But you never know what your heart is going to do."

Nadine smiled, her eyes twinkling. "So, when did your heart realize that you were in love with dear, sweet, slightly insane Thaddeus Gumblethorpe?"

Rhonda's eyes widened, her face flushed. "How did you…" She swallowed hard and took a deep breath. "About five hours ago."

Nadine clapped her hands together and laughed.

"It's about damn time girl!"

"that's the exact same thing Arnold told me."

Nadine laughed again. "Great minds…" she leaned forward. "So? What's the problem?"

"the last time I heard from Tad was when he dropped me off after our first meeting."

"That was almost a week ago. What did you do?"

"I don't know," Rhonda sighed, rubbing her forehead. "I've run the conversation over and over in my mind but I honestly have no idea what happened."

"you didn't say anything off putting?" Nadine shrugged. "Granted I haven't' seen you since high school but back then some of the rudest things came out of your mouth."

"No, you're right." Rhonda shook her head. "But no, I don't think so."

"Okay, let's go through all of this."

The server came back with their orders and conversation lulled until they were alone again. Rhonda looked at Nadine's order; a cobb salad with a slice of the bistro's homemade bread on the side. Her own chicken panini and chips looked like too much food by comparison.

"May I?"

Nadine was eyeing her chips. Rhonda pushed her plate a little towards her and Nadine picked two chips off the plate.

"Mmmmm," she moaned after popping one into her mouth. "You know I have never had one of these until now." She chewed in bliss for a moment and swallowed. "All the times we came here in high school I was always so jealous. The chips and bread always smelled so good and I constantly heard about how amazing their chips were. Meanwhile I was eating ice chips."

"You haven't been here since high school?"

Nadine shook her head. "I have but old habits. I could never justify getting a plateful of chips without the old fear of me eating all of them by myself."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"No, no." She plucked one more chip form Rhonda's plate and popped it into her mouth before picking up her fork and spearing a piece of salad. "That was my spurge. At the risk of sounding like an after school special, anorexia is a lifetime disease. I constantly live in the fear that I'll slip back into old habits just as there will always be that small niggling of fear in the back of my mind that if I start eating I'll never stop. But it's something I've learned to control and three chips and a slice of bread for dinner isn't going to break me. Now," she took a bite of her salad and chewed. "Let's talk about Tad. There had to have been something that freaked him out. There are few things in this world that would freak our Thaddeus Gumblethorpe and I can count them on one hand and still have a finger or two to spare."

"Well sex isn't on that list." Rhonda muttered. Nadine grinned, her face lighting up.

"Oh! Are we doing old school girl gossip? Because I've always though sex with Tad would be…intense."

Rhonda narrowed her eyes. "You've thought about sex with Tad?"

"Who hasn't? Except Helga because there has never been anything the least bit sexual about their relationship. They are so asexual in their relationship that they could sleep in the same bed naked and the only comment would be someone was hogging the covers." She took another bite of her salad. "So, other than her, I can safely say that there were a large number of girls in high school that would have happily slept with Tad had they been able to pull his attention away from you."

Rhonda sat bac with a frown. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. True, in high school Tad was handsome and utterly devoted to her which she, of course, like and took entirely too much advantage of. The idea of her so called high school friends-now all probably the type of social climbing PTA mom who got together over coffee or daily jogs or manicure to attempt to one up each other's husbands and children-that those types of women would see Tad, with his money and name in Hollywood and decide that he could be the ultimate prize in their one-upmanship. That didn't sit well with her at all.

"Oh my God!"

Nadine's smile was rapidly growing as she had watched Rhonda's face as she worked out her horror of the girls she mistakenly called friends in high school seeing Tad in that way.

"What?"

"This is what it looks like when Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd falls in love."

"I…I'm not…" her eyes widened and she dropped her face into her hands. "I'm an idiot. Oh God, I'm such an idiot!"

"What? What?" Nadine's bemused grin turned to concern. "You already knew you were in love with him."

"No. I think I know what I said." She pulled her hands from her face and took a shaky breath. "I think I may have inadvertently told him I loved him."

Nadine's surprised face might have been hilarious if she wasn't so miserable.

"How do you not know if you told someone you loved them?"

"I think my exact words were _This is one of the reasons I love you._ Ugh!" She raked a hand through her hair, pulling strands out of her carefully structured hairstyle. "Nadine help!"

Nadine stared at her for a moment before plucking a couple more chips from Rhonda's plate.

"We're going to do something I haven't done in years. We're heading back to your house where I'm going to spend the night because there is no way I'm making it home tonight. We're going to pick up a bottle of wine, sit in your living room, watch old movies and take notes. Because I feel this type of problem can only be solved by John Cusak. Maybe Tom and Renee, but definitely John Cusak."

* * *

Ronnie sat bundled up under an old blanket Xander had brought with him. Izzy called him when they'd decided at the last minute to go to the Homecoming game and he'd picked them all up with a thermos of hot chocolate and two heavy blankets. Isabella and Xander were under one and she and Alan were cuddled under the second. She had no idea what the game was about, only that her team were the ones in the blue and yellow and when everyone else on their side of the stands cheered she joined in. Izzy and Xander were more into it; Izzy with her brother being on the JV team and she guessed by the yelling Xander was doing that he watched the game on a somewhat regular basis.

Someone was running down the field and Xander and Izzy had both jumped up, yelling and cheering. Ronnie raised a fist and whooped a couple of times in support. Alan chucked beside her.

"Gumdrop, you are cracking me up."

"I don't know the first thing about this game." She said as she settled back on the bench. "Truth be told, this is my first football game here."

"Seriously?" He looked at her, eyes wide.

"Seriously. I've never been to one. Izzy might have but as far as I know neither have Lyss or Daphne either."

"Daphne hadn't but Lyss went to one with me," Izzy said on the other side of her. "But she was on her phone the entire game so I'm not sure that counts."

Ronnie stared at the field; the strange grouping of teen boys in different colors.

"What are they doing?"

"Third down," Izzy explained. "They're setting up for a run and if that doesn't work a possible field goal kick. One touchdown will tie us up."

"Oh…good." She looked at Alan and shrugged. He grinned again and wrapped and arm around her shoulder. A whistle blew and the teams got into formation. The ball was passed and Ronnie found herself following the ball as it was passed around and run down the field. The cheering grew louder as one of her school's players broke away from the crowd and began running down the field. Izzy and Xander were on their feet yelling gas was the rest of their side. Even Alan was standing up screaming excitedly. He grabbed her hand and pulled her up.

She cheered, yelling at the player to run, knowing he couldn't hear her over the roar of everyone else but getting caught up in the excitement.

The player made it past the line and the stand erupted in cheers. Alan's hand was still gripping hers and she felt a warmth that didn't' come from the hot chocolate or the blankets. She couldn't concentrate on the game or the players, not that she was doing much of that before, but now the distraction of Alan's hand in hers was suddenly driving her to distraction.

The football was set up and one of the players kicked it. It was as if the entire stadium were holding their breath. The football went between the goal posts as the buzzer sounded and the entire stadium erupted in shouts and cheers.

Izzy and Xander whooped in excitement and even Alan was yelling excitedly.

"Yes!" He turned and scooped her up in a hug. She laughed at first but it faded quickly as the realization of Alan's arms around her set in. He'd been around her all week and it hadn't hit her like this hug did. All her previous nervousness reappeared. Luckily Alan didn't seem to notice.

"That was great! I haven't been to a game since I left high school."

Xander folded up one of the blankets.

"Are you out of school?"

"Two years," Alan admitted. I'm nineteen."

Xander grinned. "Ooh, older man."

Ronnie blushed as Alan grinned cheekily, his arms still around her. "Two years isn't anything." He looked down at Ronnie, pulling far enough away that he could look down at her. "You ready to head back?"

She nodded, warm in his embrace. "I think our mom's want to do the hair and makeup thing early. But we can make hot chocolate at my house if you guys don't want to call it a night yet."

Izzy grinned at her best friend. "Sounds like a plan. Let's head back to Xander's truck and hit your house. Maybe we can see if Daphne's found a dress yet."

They filed out of the bleachers, Izzy and Xander going over the game with Alan throwing in a comment here and there, his hand firmly clasping hers. She could feel her cheeks heating up as they passed students and their families; some of the kids and a couple of the parents snapping pictures of Alan with their phones, the beanie covering his hair not really doing much to hide who he was.

He and Anne had been there a week and she still wasn't used to the semi constant attention. She supposed it could've been worse but, for a girl who pretty much kept to herself her entire life, this was kind of bad.

As if he knew what she was thinking-it was creepy in a good way how he always seemed to know- Alan let go of her hand to drape his arms over her shoulder and tuck her close to him, shielding her from camera flashes and the people they passed on their way to Xander's truck.

"Pew!" Xander said as they all climbed into the truck and shut the doors. "Is it always like this for you?"

"Sometimes, yeah," Alan admitted. "but in LA, you get used to it. Actually, this is somewhat tame."

"No offence, but better you than me."

Alan snickered before turned his attention back to Ronnie.

"You okay gumdrop?"

She nodded, sinking into his warmth and closing her eyes. She wasn't sure why she was suddenly so nervous but she'd contemplate that later tonight.

Isabella surreptitiously watched Alan and Ronnie from the rearview mirror. Alan's arm was still around the girl and she was cuddled against him, eyes closed, half smiling at whatever he was saying in her ear.

Her friend had changed so much over the past year. She would readily admit that until Anne and Alan showed up in Hillwood, she'd thought that Ronnie had only been following them on social media like she, Lyss and Daphne and half the student population had been doing. But in the time the two stars has been here, she'd watched the easy interaction between them and Ronnie. Even though he was a Hollywood actor, it seemed, at least to her and despite all of Ronnie's insistence to the opposite, that Alan might just have some romantic feeling towards her and that her completely unromantic friend might just have some romantic feelings after all.

* * *

The first thing they heard when they walked into the house was Rhonda's voice quoting a movie.

" _You complete me_. That had go to be the corniest line in a romantic movie and yet we fall for it every time."

Alan perked up as he shut the door.

"Oh, is Tad here?"

Another female voice answered.

"Tom pulls corn off amazingly. But that's just him. How about _I have crossed oceans of time to find you_."

More laughter was heard in the back living room as the four teens eyes each other in confusion before heading towards the back to investigate.

"Why am I not at all surprised you'd pick a quote from a vampire?"

"Gary Oldman was damn sexy in a steam punk sort of way. At least I didn't pick the creepster vampire."

The four stepped into the room to find Rhonda on the couch next to a mocha skinned woman with blonde braids giggling like schoolgirls.

"Mom?" Ronnie asked looked for an explanation. Beside her Alan was staring at the blonde with a sense of awe. Both women looked over.

"Veronica. I expected you to be out later."

Beside her the blonde burst out laughing.

"Damn, for a minute I thought I stepped into a way back machine!" She stood up and Alan followed her movements still in awe. The blonde looked between the teens and Rhonda. "Rhon, you know who…"

"Oh yes, I've been reminded this part week."

"Nami," Alan breathed lowly. To his shock, the blonde bowed.

"Ronnie, this is Nadine Robinson, my best friend in high school. This, of course, if my daughter Veronica, one of her best friends Isabella Berman and I'm not sure who the third person is…"

"This is Xander," Isabella introduced. Xander raised a hand in greeting.

"Hi."

"He's her boyfriend," Ronnie said as Rhonda climbed up from the couch. Beside Ronnie, Alan held out his hand.

"Hi. Alan Adams." Nadine shook his hand.

"Oh," she answered playfully. "I know who you are. Your interpretation of Theo is quite brilliant."

Ronnie's eyes went wide as did Rhonda's while Alan looked delighted.

"You've watched Ever After?" Rhonda asked. Nadine looked back at her with a grin and a wink.

"Don't tell Tad. He made me promise to never watch it but in the end, the temptation was just too great. I own all four seasons on blue ray."

* * *

 **Another AN:** Thank you all for the amazing reviews you guys have been leaving! Sometimes people are uncomfortable in leaving their name in reviews and that is fine! You can always review or leave a comment as anonymous, I don't mind at all! Recently there was a guest who left a comment. I found them and we talked but I was left wondering if anyone else was wondering the same thing. So for everyone...I'm debating. It was an idea I had, an idea I seriously entertained and am still entertaining. It is all up to bunnies and their whims along with if I can figure out how to make it work without being placating or insulting. So...we'll see Again, thank you all! :)


	21. Chapter 21

_The After-Prom party was dead boring. Rhonda thought as she sat in one of the bathrooms. The entire penthouse had been rented out for the party by her parents and everyone was having a great time._

 _Or so she assumed.  
Less than an hour in and she was bored: bored of her classmates, bored of her prom date, bored of this dress, these people she surrounded herself with. She missed Tad; he didn't show up to Prom at all leaving her alone without someone to balance the inane ridiculousness. She didn't realize until that time just how much she'd come to rely on him and Nadine to keep her grounded. _

_Now, Nadine was in a hospital somewhere, Tad was God knows where and she was sitting in a bathroom hiding out at her own after Prom party wishing she were anywhere else._

 _The bathroom door opened and she looked up ready to verbally cut down someone for not knocking first while mentally cursing herself for not actually remembering to lock the damn door._

 _The verbal barbs died on her lips when Arnold slipped into the bathroom, shutting the door quickly behind him. He turned around, his sigh of relief halted when he spotted Rhonda sitting on the floor._

" _For God's sake," she hissed. "Lock the door!"_

 _He quickly flipped the lock and slid down onto the floor, his back against the door. They eyed each other silently for a moment, before Arnold finally spoke._

" _Nothing against your fabulous party, but I needed a few minutes away from it."_

" _Arnold," she waved a hand around the room. "You've literally caught me hiding in a bathroom at my own party, I think explanations are useless at this point."_

" _You're right," he chuckled._

 _They sat in silence for a moment more, Arnold looked around the large room. His gaze landed on a rectangle shaped box on the wall._

" _What's that?" he asked pointing to the box. Rhonda turned around to look where he was pointing._

" _It's a towel warmer. Which sounds like a good idea right now."_

" _Huh. Clever." He eyed her strapless gown and shrugged off his tux jacked, holding it out to her. "Here. Put this on."_

" _Thank you, Arnold." She slid the jacked on, sighing at the residual body warmth. "So, what brings you to my fabulous hiding spot?"_

 _His lips quirked up in a quick grin._

" _I'm an inconsiderate boyfriend who left his Prom date alone so he could dance with the Prom Queen." The grin appeared again, self-deprecating this time. "She was embarrassed and apparently, I ruined Prom. So, what brings you to this fabulous hiding spot?"_

" _You know Arnold, you are allowed to break up with Lila," she said cautiously. "couples break up all the time."_

 _He shook his head. "It's fine, she gets like this, tomorrow everything will be fine again. All relationships go through bumps, what kind of person would I be if I broke it off after an argument?"_

" _Arnold, we're seventeen. We're not supposed to know about serious relationships. I can promise you that out of all the guys I've dated, not one of them was my soulmate or whatever. There's a damn good chance Lila isn't yours either, no matter how long you guys have dated."_

" _I love her Rhonda," he said. "Do any of us really believe in soulmates?"_

 _She fell silent, thinking about what he said. Then she heaved a sigh._

" _I'm half tempted to sneak out of here and find out where the anti-Prom party is."_

 _Arnold frowned. "Anti-Prom party?"_

 _Did you miss the fact that there were a couple of people missing from Prom? Or that a couple more left early?"_

" _They're probably at home or a diner or…something." His frown deepened, a flash of sadness appeared for a moment. "Besides, would we really be welcome at an anti-Prom party?"_

" _I'm already questioning my life choices Shortman, don't make it worse."_

 _He gave a short laugh. Fair enough. You think we should go back out there?"_

" _maybe." She paused. "Maybe in a little bit._

 _He nodded. "I could handle the peace in here for a little while longer."_

* * *

At nine in the morning three adult women took four tired teenagers to their appointment at Le' Boutique, the local salon for a hair and makeup appointment.

Alyssa yawned as she leaned against Isabella's shoulder. Isabella sipped her coffee as she studied Ronnie who was reading on her tablet.

She glanced back at the three mothers all talking quietly on the other end of the waiting area before looking back at Ronnie.

"Psst." She hissed. Ronnie didn't move but Daphne glanced up from her phone and raised an eyebrow. She motioned for her to nudge Ronnie.

"Stop moving," Alyssa whined quietly from her place on Isabella's shoulder.

"Shut up princess."

Daphne frowned in confusion. Isabella's eyes narrowed and she tilted her head. She'd been running the odd introduction the night before through her brain all evening.

"So. I met Nami last night."

Daphne went pale and Ronnie's head snapped up, he eyes wide behind her glasses. It was all the confirmation Isabella needed.

"Are you two freaking kidding me right now?" she hissed. Daphne shifted uncomfortably in her chair and Ronnie hadn't moved still frozen in place. Alyssa lifted her head from Isabella's shoulder frowning in confusion at her friends.

"What's going on?"

"Izzy, I can explain…"

"This is the best thing ever!"

Daphne and Ronnie looked at each other in disbelief and confusion.

"What's going on?" Alyssa asked again. Before anyone could say anything, Isabella leaned back and whispered in Alyssa's ear. Daphne and Ronnie could only watch in horror as Alyssa's eyes grew wider and wider.

"Shut. The. Front. Door!" Alyssa exclaimed happily.

"Girls!" Timberly, chastised. "It's too early for that."

Alyssa looked back at the three mothers, her grin widening as she studied them, before whirling back to look at her three best friends.

"Shut the front door!" she repeated a bit less exuberant than last time. "Are you kidding me right now? That is freaking awesome!"

"Oh God," Ronnie buried her face in her hands. Daphne pointed at Alyssa.

"You can't tell anybody!" She hissed.

"Okay, first off, you two are in so much trouble for not sharing. You know the rules! Second, we're practically royalty and we can't tell anyone? How is that fair?"

"Lyss, I'm serious!"

"Fine, but babies!" Alyssa leaned forwards so they could talk without being overheard. "Your dad and your mom," she pointed at both girls. "Are banging the two executive producers of the best YA tv show this decade. And you," she pointed at a horrified Ronnie. "Are going to Homecoming with the actor who played the guy your mom's banging. Years down the line you two could absolutely write a book about this; Ever After, after the fairytale." Her hands spread out like a banner of words were between them. "You could make millions!"

"I'm gonna be ill," Ronnie muttered. Daphne leaned forward, giving Alyssa a hard stare.

I'm sorry I didn't tell you. But you absolutely cannot tell anyone. I promise, when we get back to the house, I will tell you both the entire story but you absolutely cannot put this on social media Lyss!"

"Fine," Alyssa sat back with a smug smirk. "But this better be a damn good story."

* * *

"So, you're finally returning to the land of sun and beach?"

They were at the same place they met when she first arrived. Same booth, same waitress flirting with him. The only difference was Arnold now sat with them also.

"Yep. Finally outstayed my welcome."

"Never," Arnold insisted.

Helga and Gerald shared a look.

"So," Gerald said, changing the subject. "Homecoming dance tonight?"

Arnold rolled his eyes. "Three years of getting off the hook and the final year they all decide to go."

Gerald chuckled. "Just wait until Prom."

Arnold groaned. "I'm trying not to," he tilted his head. "I never asked but where were you guys on Prom night? I never saw any of you?"

Helga and Gerald shared another look.

"We spent Prom night in Mighty Pete," Gerald told him. "Me, Hel and Tad. Eugene, Sheena, Harold and Patty showed up later and we got drunk, ate snacks and reminisced about old times."

Helga grinned lopsidedly. "Best Prom of my life."

Arnold looked between the two of them.

"Underage drinking in Mighty Pete?"

"You're damn right," Gerald teased. Arnold shrugged.

"I'm sorry I missed it. "

"You were Prom King," Helga teased. "Surely that was worth it?"

"How did you know?"

"Sheena and Eugene."

Another shrug. "I wasn't expecting it. And it wasn't worth the amount of kissing up I had to do with Lila afterwards. She was pissed and I could never figure out why at the time."

"Excuse me."

Conversation stopped as the three turned towards the teen who'd stepped up to their table. She was tall with black hair with pinks stripes. She wore a black and pink fan made tee shirt that read **: "You're the boss Helen." "Damn right I am."**

"Are you Hel?" the girl asked. Helga blinked as the girl hurried on.

"I'm so sorry for interrupting you but you're Hel, right? One half of Inane Zebra? And one half the creative team that wrote Ever After?"

Helga straightened in the booth looking at the teen.

"Um…yes? Usually people don't recognize me. It's usually the actors."

The teen shook her head.

"The actors are great but it's your and Tad's words and directions that created the story. I've followed you since Urban Legends, you two are brilliant. Do you…would you…can I get your autograph?"

Arnold and Gerald shared an amused look.

"Move over Gerald." Arnold said as he slid out of the booth next to Helga to sit next to Gerald. He waved to the now empty seat.

"Please."

The teen stared at Helga hesitantly. Helga sighed and pointed to the seat.

"Park it."

She sat down in the booth, eyes wide.

"Thank you. I'm so sorry for interrupting your lunch. I saw you through the window and ditched my Mom and sister to see you. I can't believe you're here. Like actually here in this town. I thought it was weird when Alan and Anne showed up at school to meet up with Veronica Montague but this is just so cool."

"I'm not sure I should be encouraging that type of behavior."

The teen rolled her eyes. "Trust me, if you knew my family, you'd understand. I've been following your work since you came on the scene. I write, as a hobby, but you and Tad have inspired me so much. And your writing had kept me sane my entire high school career. I identify with Helen so much. Well, not the unrequited love part but almost everything else."

Helga couldn't help it, she liked this strange girl who had the guts to interrupt their lunch and talk about her rather than the actors. She ignored Gerald's knowing grin or the shocked look on Arnold's face.

"What's your name?"

"Ellabeth. Ella for short."

She held out her hand. Helga took it, shaking it.

"It's nice to meet you Ella. What did you want me to sign?"

Ella whipped off her shirt, causing Gerald to give a small shout before revealing a tank top underneath and handed it to Helga with a silver sharpie.

"Would you feel weird signing my shirt?"

"Not at all. I kind of like this shirt."

"You don't say?' Gerald deadpanned. Beside him, Arnold just shook his head.

The door to the restaurant opened and a shrill voice yelled out.

"Ellabeth Miriam Carson, where are you?"

Ella's hand slapped at her face.

"Oh jeez, she's caught me."

Gerald suddenly began coughing uncontrollably as an older blonde woman followed by a younger blond girl popping gum came into view. Arnold's eyes widened and he looked between the woman standing and Helga.

"You can't just run off Ella, we didn't know where you were! If it hadn't been for Maribeth noticing where you went, I would've had to call the police to find you!" Tears began welling into the woman's eyes and Helga found herself covering her face to hide the rolling of her eyes. Beneath the table, she felt Gerald kick her. The blonde girl standing beside the woman grinned.

"You're in trouble."

"And why are you in a tank top? Around adult men for that matter."

Arnold raised an eyebrow. "Hey Olga."

The woman finally looked at him, her eyes brightening. "Arnold! And Detective Johanssen. How lovely to see you today. Has my Ella been bothering you, I am so sorry about that, I honestly don't know what has gotten into her today."

"Oh, for crying out loud," Helga muttered. She took the shirt and signed it. Then she grabbed a napkin from the table, and held out her hand.

"I need your pen Gerald."

Gerald raised an eyebrow. "And you call yourself a writer," he said as he handed her his pen. Ignoring him, she wrote something down on the napkin and folded it up, handing the pen back to Gerald and the folded napkin to Ella along with the shirt and the sharpie completely ignoring the woman standing at the table who was still trying to get Ella to leave.

"Your shirt, your pen and this." She focused on Ella's embarrassed face as she handed her the napkin. "Don't ever give up on your dreams and always be prepared to sacrifice everything for them." Her lips tilted up. "But remember that sometimes life might throw a surprise your way."

Ella grinned, taking the items. "Thank you so much. I really appreciate it."

"Come on Ella, we have things to do and you've wasted enough of these nice people's time."

Arnold still looked between Helga and Olga, absolutely flabbergasted that not once had the blonde woman standing even designed to look Helga's way and that Helga wasn't saying a word about it. The younger girl frowned at Helga as if trying to figure out why her sister wanted the woman's autograph. Ella stood up still smiling.

"Thank you so much."

"Come on El, I'm getting those shoes and you're wasting time!"

Deciding the woman wasn't worth her time, the younger girl flounced out of the restaurant and Olga hurried after her.

"Mari, darling, wait up. Come along Ella!"

Helga grabbed the teen's arm before she fully left and Ella looked at her questioningly. Helga's lips twitched again.

"Sometime, later today, ask your mom about her darling baby sister."

Ella gave her a look and then nodded.

"Okay."

The table was quiet for a moment until Gerald burst out laughing.

"Damn Hel, I thought you were kidding! I've seen some clueless people in my life but your sister takes the damn cake."

"What the hell was that?" Arnold moved back across the table to sit next to Helga. "She didn't even look at you, what the hell was that?"

Helga shrugged. "That was Olga. If you aren't worth her time at that moment, she doesn't notice you."

"But she didn't even notice you."

"Arnold, it's okay, I've lived with it my whole life, I'm used to it. I'm just worried about Ella."

Gerald leaned back in the booth, arms crossed. "You gave her your number, didn't you?"

"Maybe. I might have put on there for your eyes only also."

Gerald laughed. Arnold wrinkled his nose as he wrapped an arm around Helga's shoulder.

"No wonder you were in a hurry to leave here."

"So, what time are you coming over to…whose house are you all hitting tonight?" Helga asked Gerald, rapidly changing the subject before Arnold could dwell on it too much. Gerald caught the change.

"I think it's Harold and Patty's they're all at tonight and yes, Timberly forced my hand, so I gotta play the good Uncle and see my niece off. They only get this once, so she'd better not expect me to be over there taking pictures for Prom."

Arnold groaned again. "I don't want to think about Prom."

* * *

"I can't believe out baby girl is all grown up." Timberly cooed. She sat on the couch in nervous excitement with Patty and Rhonda. They'd all been kicked out of Isabella's bedroom while the girls got dressed.

Alan and Anne had sprung for a limo for all four couples so there was some nervous excitement while they all waited for their "dates" to arrive. Arnold leaned against the wall closest to the stairs and near the kitchen where he could keep an eye on both areas. The mothers were already nervous but the fathers and uncles were standing in the kitchen, with Helga, talking about bar-b-que and some yearly televised contest all of them, except maybe Helga, trying their best to not look anxious. He had his own anxiety going. His daughter was going to a Homecoming dance. The first big dance of her whole school career. He'd be lying if he didn't admit, at least to himself, that her was more than a little nervous that the first big school dance his daughter decided to attend was her Senior Year Homecoming. It's was awkward, and eerie and he couldn't help but feel some trepidation regarding the entirety of it.

"You guys ready down there?" Isabella's voice carried down the stairs. The excited squeals of Timberly and Rhonda, combined with the emphatic cries of "No!" from Harold, Gerald and Devon added with the amused chuckle of Patty made Arnold smile as he pushed form the wall and pulled his phone out. He knew Timberly would be taking a mess of photos of everyone with the new camera she'd gotten last Christmas so he wasn't too worried about getting the right frames.

"No crying!" Daphne yelled down as they heard the upstairs bedroom door open.

"No guarantees!" Timberly yelled back.

Five steps down and Timberly was already crying.

"Here we go," Gerald joked.

"Shut it you, look at our babies!"

Alyssa came down first in an orange knee length dress joking posing on the stairs as Timberly took pictures.

"Movie it selfie queen," Isabella teased as she stopped on the stairs behind her, her gold off the shoulder dress hiked up so she wouldn't trip on it. Patty smiled at her daughter.

"You look beautiful."

"I feel ridiculous." Isabella grumbled as she pushed past Alyssa to make it down the stairs.

"You don't have to go you know," Harold said. Patty gave him a look.

"Don't make me banish you to the man shed Harold."

Alyssa finally finished walking down the stairs and Arnold looked up, his breath leaving his body in one big whoosh. Daphne was walking down next in a sea green mid-calf dress and for one moment, she looked like her mother.

He and Lila might not get along at all now but back in high school she was one of the most beautiful girls he knew. While Daphne probably wouldn't appreciate the comparison to her mother, it didn't stop her from looking stunning.

Beside him, he heard Rhonda gasp and took his eyes from his daughter to look at Ronnie.

Where Daphne might have looked like her mother, Veronica Montague was the spitting image.

Hair up, contacts in, makeup on, her sleeveless scarlet gown lifted just enough that she could make it down the stairs without falling.

She was breathtaking.

He wrapped a comforting arm around a tearful Rhonda's shoulder. Helga's voice was suddenly in his other ear.

"It's like I stepped back into 2005," she whispered. He nodded as she watched Timberly herd the girls into a group by the wall for pictures.

Even Devon, Gerald and Harold looked a bit choked up.

"Okay, I want separate pictures and then group ones." Timberly ordered, slipping into her photographer voice. Rhonda lifted her phone and snapped a couple of pictures and Arnold did the same. One of these would end up being his lock screen photo, he just wasn't sure which one.

The doorbell rang and the girls started giggling. Patty slipped past everyone to beat Harold to the door. She opened it to a smiling Anne standing at the door dressed in a silver sparkle mini dress. Three guys in tuxes stood behind her.

"Hi! I've been sent as an emissary to see if the girls are ready yet?"

"Clever offensive boys," Patty said, nodding impressive.

"I need pictures outside!" Timberly yelled as the girls began grabbing their stuff. 'Before the light is gone, hurry up!"

The girls piled out of the house, the parents following.

Anne whistled when Daphne stepped out of the house.

"Looking good, Shortman. I think I got lucky."

Daphne blushed, sliding her arm through Anne's.

"Well, we're definitely going to draw attention when we walk in."

Alan stepped past Xander and Court who were being herded around by Timberly so she could get pictures, and stepped closer to the entrance of the house, his eyes focused on Ronnie.

The dark-haired teen was oblivious, her back to him, arms crossed over her chest and talking to her mother.

"You look beautiful sweetheart." Rhonda insisted.

"I feel ridiculous. I feel like I'm playing dress up, this isn't me. Can I just bring a jacket or something?"

Her last words faded as Alan took her hand. She turned around as he lifted her hand and bowed as he pressed his lips to her skin.

"You look incandescent," he said lowly. Ronnie blushed.

"I would beg that you not deprive the plebeians in your school of your beauty but if you feel uncomfortable, then…"

Letting go of her hand, he pulled of his suit jacket, shook it out and laid it over her shoulders.

"Leave it to Alan Adams to raise the bar on the romance game," Helga was standing next to Rhonda and said it low enough that only she overheard. Rhonda held a hand to her heart.

"Are you swooning? I think I might be swooning."

"He has always been very swoon-worthy," Helga agreed. "It's part of his charm."

"Do you think he's acting?"

Helga narrowed her gaze at the dark-haired actor who was gently leading the still blushing Ronnie towards where Timberly was taking pictures.

"At this time, I honestly don't know."

Rhonda looked at the blonde.

"After the kids leave, would you be willing to help me with something?"

Helga gave her a wary look.

'Maybe? What does it entail?"

"Texting Tad and sending him a picture of the kids?"

A mischievous smirk appeared on her lips.

"I shouldn't bother to come home tonight, then?"

"If everything goes to plan, no."

The smile morphed into a full grin.

* * *

"When does your plane leave?"

"Late tomorrow morning."

Tad sat with his parents for one last meal. His mother was getting around much better, looking like her old self albeit with a cane. He'd helped her make dinner, telling them and himself that he wanted to spend some time with them before he left. It had nothing to do with not wanting to go home or not wanting to think about what tonight was. Or avoiding a certain person.

He didn't want to think about Rhonda. Having two weeks of heavenly bliss with her both in bed and out, was more than he'd ever dreamed of before he left Hillwood the first time. It didn't even enter his brain when Arnold showed up with her daughter. His mind cataloged, acknowledged and dismissed any future possibility of a potential meeting with Veronica's mother as a flight of fancy. So to even have had these two weeks in Heaven with his goddess was more than he had ever expected.

When she'd made her throwaway comment at Sheena's place, he'd had a vision of high school so strong, when he was her jester, doing anything she wished so long as he was in her company, it had almost set him reeling. He'd fought long and hard against that, he wouldn't go back.

"Where's Rhonda been?" Aggie asked. "She's a lovely woman and you seemed to be spending a lot of time with her while you were down here."

He scowled at his plate. The damn woman was psychic and knew exactly when to strike. Picking up his water bottle, he drank from it nonchalantly…or what he hoped looked nonchalant.

"Busy with her own life, I suppose." He answered. "It is Homecoming night and I think her daughter is going."

"I've always liked her," Ken said, completely unaware of mother and son's nonchalant tug of war. "She comes by regularly to see how we're doing. Your mother and I have pretty much watched Veronica grow up."

The comment caught Tad off guard and he broke off from his nonverbal sparring with his mother to look at his dad with some confusion.

"You mean she brought her daughter in when she dropped off her dry cleaning?"

"She did," Ken agreed. "But she would also stop by with pictures or the girls and bring cookies or ask if we needed anything. Took me to a doctor's appointment once because she was off work and overheard your mother and I arguing about the car. All four of those girls practically grew up around this shop when Rhonda had them." He nodded, unaware that Tad's jaw was practically dropped and his wife was doing a covert fist pump under the table. "Lovely young woman she grew up to be.

By this time Aggie wasn't even trying to hold back her smirks. The Flight of the Valkyries played on Tad's phone, interrupting the conversation and he pulled it from his back pocket.

There was a picture of Ronnie in her red dress standing next to Alan in a tux. He couldn't help but smile. He knew she'd look amazing in red. The text below the picture read:

 **The kids are off. The moms are drowning their grief in wine. I'm off to enjoy my last night in Hellwood. See you in the morning.**

"Something interesting?" Aggie asked.

"Nope." Tad answered as he slid the phone back into his pocket. "Just Hel telling me she'll see me tomorrow."

"I'm glad she and Arnold are finally together." Aggie sighed blissfully as she leaned back in her chair. "Everyone needs a happy ending at some time in their life, no matter what your taglines say."

Tad smiled, reaching over the table to squeeze his mother's hand.

"Yeah mom."

Obviously, the drugs she was on were kicking in.

* * *

 **AN** : Apologies for the delay. I have no excuse. (Well, I have one, but it's a lame excuse, full of bunny wars.)


	22. Chapter 22

**AN:** Sorry! I'm so sorry for the delay! I'd love to blame it on bunnies from a completely different fandom who came in and strong armed themselves into fifty chapter story I could not stop writing. But I'm back, I'm giving you the rest of the story because...well I owe you and ti's been about four week anyway, yeah? Also, all mistakes are mine. Like Allen's name. And after everyone read this I'll probably go back and re update chapters with correct spellings of my character's name. Sor sorry about that. And I hope you enjoy the final chapters of this story.

* * *

" _Summer time…and the livin' is easy…" Tad crooned while he sat on the bleachers. Spring had given way to warmer weather and there were only three weeks of school left. Gerald and Helga were at Slaussen's for some therapy time. He knew she was planning to tell him their plans for after graduation and he didn't feel he needed to be there for that. That was something between the two of them. Throughout their four-year tenure at Hillwood High, Helga and Gerald had carried on a tentative relationship, one that was anchored by the one person they had in common and honestly, in thought he would never share with anyone, he thought sure that once that anchor was gone, the two of them would've drifted away. So the fact that they were closer than they'd been when…well, before that day, was a testament to the person in question and their love for her._

 _He frowned at his biology homework before closing the book and sliding it back into his bookbag. He had a date at the rehab facility this afternoon with Nadine. She'd been eating a bit more and working with some of the case workers there to finish her graduations studies. She had more than enough credits to graduation, she only needed the final Senior required classes so if everything went well, she'd have her diploma by mid-August. She wouldn't get to walk but she'd have her high school diploma which meant she could try to register for college when she felt up to it. In the meantime, she could help him with his damn biology._

" _Is this seat taken?"_

 _He looked up, squinting against the sun and smiled._

" _Not at all goddess, have a seat."_

 _Rhonda wiped off the bleacher and sat next to Tad, her designer bookbag carefully placed on the seat next to her._

" _School is out for the day Taddy, why are you sitting in the bleachers instead of enjoying the pre-summer temperatures?"_

" _I am enjoying the pre-summer temperatures, cupcake," he waved a hand expressively towards the empty field. "Hence the reason I'm out here soaking up the sun."_

" _But at school. You could be in the park or on the boardwalk or somewhere not doing homework." She made a show of looked around him. "Where's your partner in crime?"_

" _With Gerald. He wanted to talk to her so I am graciously stepping out of the way so they can have some bonding time."_

" _You aren't worried he's trying to take away your best friend?"_

 _Tad snorted. "First? Gerald is Arnold's best friend and nothing is ever going to change that. Second? I am secure enough in my friendship with Hel that I am perfectly okay with her having other friends." He waggled his eyebrows. "Just like I am perfectly okay with you flirting with other guys."_

" _We aren't dating Tad."_

" _And whose fault is that?"_

 _Rhonda laughed lightly. "You couldn't handle me."_

" _You never know until you try."_

" _I'll make you a deal. We graduate in less than a month. As soon as the family obligations and graduations parties are over, I'll let you take me out on a date. Not just as friends but a real one." She gave him a wink. "And if you're really lucky, I might even let you kiss me at the end of it."_

 _Three days after graduation, he and Hel were leaving for California. He knew that, Hel knew that and probably at this moment, Gerald now knew. There wouldn't be a date, there would never be a date. Tad pasted on a smile and a wink, part of his heart dying while his brain insisted she wouldn't ever love him, that even if he stayed she'd never see him as anything more than her jester._

" _You got yourself a date, goddess." He teased._

* * *

The dance had started by the time the limo pulled up to the front of the school gym. Lights and music could be heard as the driver opened the door.

Few of the kids who were mulling outside stopped and peered in curiosity at the limo as Isabella and Alyssa stepped out with their dates.

Anne grinned at Daphne. "Ready?"

Daphne grinned back. "Let's go start some gossip."

Anne climbed out and held a hand out behind her which Daphne took, gracefully stepping out of the limo. Inside the limo, Allen smirked as he watched Anne and Daphne ham it up for the few spectators outside, Isabella and Alyssa eventually joining in.

He knew what they were doing; making the path for Ronnie easier for just a short while longer. He knew from his time in Hollywood that once they walked into the gym, Ronnie would definitely be the focus.

"Our chance to move is now," he whispered. His date looked at him nervously. "I can only protect you so much gumdrop, the rest is your tenacity and your mother's genes." He gave her a supportive smile. "You ready?"

She nodded. He took her hand, shaking like a leaf, and kissed it.

"Let's do this."

* * *

The house was quiet when Tad stepped in. Of course he expected it to be, everyone else was out either at the dance or getting their grove on one last time…at least in this town.

It still didn't make the temporary house feel emptier than it ever had the entire month he and Hel had been here. Things had changed. He knew this and understood it; didn't mean that deep down in places he never talked about with anybody it didn't hurt…a lot.

He dropped his keys on the table, turning on lights as he made his way into the kitchen. Bypassing the yahoo, he could have those shipped back to L.A, just to annoy Hel, he grabbed a bottle of beer and twisted the cap off, tossing it on the counter as he headed back towards the dining room where he and Hel's laptops had been stationed since the beginning of this trip.

He didn't begrudge Hel her happiness, everyone was right, after decades of neglect, loss, her health, being known throughout the business as the ice queen, his best friend deserved her happy ending.

He didn't really care about happy endings (he didn't!) but he would really like some damn peace.

He took another drink before putting the bottle down and staring at the now open screen, it's curser blinking at him. Mocking him.

"Screw this," he muttered shutting the laptop, the chair scraping against the floor boards as he pushed back and stood up. Grabbing the bottle, he headed towards the living room.

New plan: finish off the last three beers in the fridge and watch explosion movies at very loud volumes. Die Hard was the perfect beginning to this brilliant plan, he decided as she crossed the hall.

His steps slowed as he heard music coming from outside the front door. Frowning he backed up, switched paths and headed towards the door. It sounded like…Peter Gabriel?

Opening the door, he stepped out into the night and immediately burst into laughter.

Rhonda was in the driveway of the rental house, standing in front of her car, her phone held above her head with both hands while her car's stereo system played In Your Eyes.

"You are ridiculous!" he shouted over the music, not moving from his spot on the front step. She merely raised one eyebrow.

"Shut off the car and get in here before I have the cops called on me my last day here!"

Sliding her phone into her back packet, she hurried over to shut the car off. Peter Gabriel's voice cut off in mid-croon leaving the neighborhood silent save for a couple of neighborhood dogs that were now barking in retaliation to the music. Pocketing her keys, she walked up to the front step. He motioned her into the house and followed her in, shutting the door behind him.

"I thought you and the other moms were drowning your sorrows in bottles of wine?"

Rhonda smirked. "That's what you were supposed to think."

His eyes widened as he realized is best friend completely played him.

"Oh…revenge will be mine." He vowed.

"Plan revenge tomorrow, let her enjoy tonight."

Well, come in, what can I get you Ms. Lloyd? Water, wine, Yahoo?"

She pointed to his bottle. "I'll take one of those if you have any left."

He lifted the bottle in salute. "One of these, coming up."

He headed back towards the kitchen, trying desperately to not be very aware of the fact she was following him. He pulled the last two bottles out, twisted the tops off both and handed her one. She took it with a nod of thanks and took a drink. He waited a bit before speaking.

"Not that I don't enjoy seeing your beautiful self, Rhonda, but what brings you here instead of-"

"I love you."

The words were rushed out in desperation, borne of a person who was pushing through nerves and terrified that if the words were not formed now, they never would be.

Tad's mouth shut with an audible snap. He swallowed thickly and tried again.

"Rhonda…"

"Thaddeus Gumblethorpe just…shut up a minute." She begged. "I love you. I am in love with you. Like, fall asleep with you every night and wake up with you every morning kind of love. Seeing you unshaven in boxers and a tee shirt, arguing over who used the last of the milk and didn't bother to buy anymore or even tell the other person kind of love. The kind of love where I can't go to sleep without hearing your voice, even though I know you're going to be thousands of miles away by this time tomorrow. The kind of love where even bad sex is good sex because it's with you."

She paused to take a breath before continuing.

"The kind of love where it seems you were my soulmate all this time and I never knew because I was blinded by what I was supposed to want as opposed to what I really wanted. That's how I love you."

She panted after spewing out that entire speech, staring at him and willing him to say something, anything.

He licked his lips, his gaze fixed on her. Finally, his lips quirked up.

"Can I use that speech? Because that was some award-winning stuff."

She picked up a bottle cap and threw it at him "Dammit Taddy!"

He took one last drink before setting his bottle down.

"Rhonda, I've loved you since grade school. Granted, in a weird creepy as hell, almost stalkerish kind of way, but I got better. I've never hidden that fact. But, and please don't take this the wrong way, I have a hard time believing this. You love fast and passionate, you fall hard and with a white-hot fire that makes it all very exciting and then you just drop it all. It's your nature and this is the only time I will ever admit anything like this…ever, I honestly don't know if I could handle that if you ever did that to me. You are the only woman who has ever had the power to completely destroy me and I'm not sure if I want to hand that over to you."

Rhonda sucked in a deep breath, blinking back tears.

"Even when you're cruel, you're kind." She whispered. Tad made a face.

"Rhon…"

"You're right," Taking another deep breath, she straightened her spine and nodded once.

"You're right," she repeated. "I was exactly that in high school and maybe even a little when I married Dashell. But I've changed. Since Ronnie, I've changed and this is the first time I've ever dared to say anything like this to anyone. Mostly because I've never felt this way about anyone else. You aren't the only one who is scared of a broken heart, Thaddeus." She took one last drink from her bottle before placing it on the counter she was holding herself steady on. "So. This is what I'm going to do. I'm going to go home and get ridiculously drunk, possibly even throw up because my daughter isn't home to judge me. Then I'm going to crawl into bed and be miserable for a couple hours. Then tomorrow I'm going to wake up with a horrible hangover and feel like shit the rest of the day. However, the next day, I am going to text you randomly on and off. And the next day and the next and so forth. You'll answer me or you won't. And eventually I'm hoping that we'll talk and the text messages will turn into phone calls and maybe…something else. Then one day, you'll wake up and you won't be able to remember a time when I wasn't in your life, annoying you with spammy text messages."

She pushed off the counter and gave him a mischievous smile. "Thanks for the beer Tad. And for the amazing time."

Tad stood there, clutching the counter, staring at her in dumbfounded shock. His eyes followed her as she walked out of the kitchen and into the hallway. He'd had women proposition him before, in much more obvious ways but Rhonda's blunt, straight forward speech had his heart pounding against his chest and his jeans suddenly much too tight.

Cursing softly, he let go of the counter and stalked through the kitchen and into the hallway where Rhonda was reaching out for the front door, her other hand in her pocket pulling out her car keys.

"Rhonda, dammit!" he yelled and she turned. He stalked the room, not stopped until he reached her and pushed her against the still closed door, his head lowering to claim her mouth. She raised up on her toes, returning his kiss, her fingers digging into the hair at the nape of his neck.

He slid his arms around her waist, pulling her to him even as he stepped closer so she was effectively trapped between his body and the door.

He kissed her until he couldn't breathe anymore and then kissed her a bit more until they finally pulled away gasping for breath.

"You make a convincing argument." He gasped. She laughed breathlessly.

"I seriously thought you were going to let me leave."

He swallowed hard again. Everything he ever wanted was in his arms at this moment and yet, he was still scared it would all disappear like smoke.

"I wasn't kidding when I said I was scared you would destroy me." He said, resting his forehead lightly against hers. "I still am, but I've always been a risk taker. Just promise that if I give you my heart you won't rip it apart."

"I promise you I will hold it as carefully as I hold my own heart." Her hands left his neck to slide over his shoulders and down his chest. "What are Helga and Arnold doing about their life?"

"Um…" he couldn't think, this close to her, her perfume was doing things to his mind. "Waiting until Daphne graduates high school and gets settled in college before moving to LA with us."

"Do you think they'd welcome an added addition?"

He leaned back to look at her. "You want to move to LA?"

She raised an eyebrow. "You want to move to Hillwood?"

"Not in particular."

"I want to be where you are Tad. If that's in LA, then I'll ask for a transfer and move to LA."

He grinned, dropping another kiss on her lips. "I do love you Rhonda."

"I know. And I love you Tad."

A mischievous grin slid across his face as his hands slid a little lower to cup her jean clad bottom. "Still thinking of going home and getting stumble down drunk?"

"Why? What did you have in mind?"

"Oh, I can think of a few things."

"Will I be properly sore and exhausted tomorrow morning?"

"I'll do my best."

"I expect nothing less." She murmured as she reached up to kiss him again.


	23. Chapter 23

" _We got Urban Legends! How did we land something as big and popular as freaking Urban Legends?"_

 _Tad was flying around the living room area, pacing in circles his hands waving in the air excitedly. Hel watched him from the couch, her ever present tablet in her hands as she swiped through pages and pages of comments regarding the floundering show._

" _Because we're that good Tad. Focus less on how we got it and more on how we can push this back up to the popularity it once had. This is going to jumpstart our career. If we can get this show back to full favorite instead of just loyal fan favorite, then we've got leverage."_

 _Tad circled back around the living room for once more lap before flopping onto the couch next to his best friend. "Leverage. I like the sound of that. Anything we want."_

" _I have an idea." Hel hedged. She flipped to another tab on her tablet and stared at it for a moment. "I've been toying with this idea for a while now, but I'm not sure if we should do it."_

 _He leaned back against the couch, moving so his was facing her, one arm resting on the back of the couch. "I'm intrigued. Go on."_

 _She shrugged, half unsure, her fingers fiddling nervously with the sides of the tablet. "It's probably a ridiculous idea and there's a damn good chance we could get sued."_

" _Now I'm really intrigued. Spill."_

 _With a heavy sigh, she handed her tablet over to him. He took it, reading the notes on the screen._

" _A YA drama? High school? We hated high school."_

' _That's what I'm writing."_

 _He scanned a bit more, his eyes shooting from the screen to her, wide and bright. "You want…everything?"_

 _She nodded, biting her lower lip. "A high school drama, only four seasons, the real story behind high school. No sugar coating, no expensive clothing or ultra-hot actors who don't even look like high schoolers. I want raw and gritty and not pretty, the way high school really is. I want to include it all; good and bad."_

 _Tad frowned. "All of it?"_

 _She nodded. He looked back at the screen. "Holly Hills High School. I like it." He looked back up at her. "We could do this Hel. It would have to be on the WCB but we could do this."_

 _She smiled crookedly. "You think so? You don't think it's crap?"_

" _I think it's brilliant. How does_ _Ever After_ _sound?" he asked, his hand lifting from the back of the couch to frame the air as if reading a marquee. "Tag line: not all stories have a happy ending."_

 _Her smile was wider. "I love it. It's perfect. We're going to do this Tad."_

" _Yes, we are. And it's going to be amazing."_

* * *

Ronnie had seen her fair share of Hollywood teen movies, even had her favorites, so she was well aware of the troupe where the mousey nerd magically transforms into the hot chick and goes to the big school dance with the popular guy and experienced the everyone looking at her moment. It was right up there with shy nerd girl finally gets one over on popular hot girl who torments her.

She was sort of expecting it when she walked into the dance on Allen Adams' arm. She just wasn't expecting the sudden sharp claw of terror in her throat when those judging eyes fell on her. Nor the hissed whispers in her head telling her she was a fraud, a sham, that she didn't belong here.

The difference between all those Hollywood teen movies of old and now was teens now were more painful, less willing to congratulate accomplishments and more willing to point out the flaws of such a match. It was all a far less polite version of Victorian matchmaking.

She was absurdly grateful for Daphne and Anne and their antics. They had only been in the dance for less than ten minutes when some of the adults-adults!- pulled him away for picture and introductions. It was so quickly and expertly done that not even Anne knew he had disappeared until Daphne noticed her alone and drug her date with her to investigate.

"Why didn't they get you too?" Daphne asked Anne. The raven-haired actress smirked and pointed towards the top of her dress.  
"Hot teen actors are a bigger draw for teens than the sexy teen actresses. We're way more dangerous, what with our boobs and short skirts. Men are never sure what to do with me."

That had been an hour ago. Ronnie had finally sent Daphne and Anne out to dance, promising she'd be fine alone.

She wasn't sure exactly what was happening between her best friend and the actress but she was feeling worse watching the casual flirting and unconscious hand and arm touches happening.

"Care to dance?"

Ronnie turned to see a sheepish Allen standing behind her. "Or have I ruined the entire experience?"

She smiled tightly, willing to keep up the façade.

"Sure."

 _This is what girlfriends of famous people must go through all the time_ , she reasoned as Allen took her hand and led her to the dance floor. Not that they were dating, he was merely doing her a favor, as a friend.

"You're tense." He remarked while they swayed to a ballad.

"Sorry. I just…I don't do well in large crowds of people. I'm more of an introvert.

"You aren't having fun?"

She gave him a smile.

"I am now." She looked over his shoulder, spotting her friends in the crowd. Izzy and Xander were swaying to the music. It looked like they were talking, their faces close together. Lyss and Court were the middle of what looked like the beginning of a polite argument. Ronnie knew by the end of the night there would be screaming and tears.

Daphne and Anne surprised her. The two girls were dancing close, barley speaking. Daphne's fingers rubbed circles on one of Anne's shoulders as they swayed.

"I didn't see that coming at all." She said. Allen raised a questioning brow and turned them slightly so he could see what she was talking about. Both eyebrows rose upward when he spotted his best friend and her date.

"Well. Looks like Anne and I will be having a talk on the way back home."  
He spun her around again, turning his attention back to her.

"I'm so sorry for abandoning you as soon as we got here."

"It's fine. You're famous, it's expected."

"But not appreciated. Especially when my date is stunning."

Her eyes widened in panic as his face lowered and she turned her own face at the last minute so his lips landed on her cheek. She still blushed.

He frowned and stepped back before taking her hand and tugging her gently.

"All right. Come on gumdrop, we're going someplace private to talk."

"What?" she stammered as he pulled her through the gym and out into the hallways, weaving through the darkened corridors.

"Told you, we're going to talk."

"We couldn't do it in the gym? Maybe by the bleachers?"

"I want to make sure this conversation is just you and me. No Anne, no your friends, no random person trying to take pictures or record our conversation."

He tried a door and found it unlocked. Pulling it open, he pulled her into what she recognized as her third period chemistry class.

He shut and locked the door behind him and left the lights off. The moonlight coming from the windows of the classroom gave off more than enough light that Ronnie could easily navigate her way around the class. She could see him clearly enough, only parts of him were highlighted in shadows.

"Now. We're alone," he paused, tilting his head. "Okay…that sounded way less serial killer-y in my head. What I mean is nobody will bother us while we talk. Nope, still sounded creepy."

"Really, there's no way this isn't going to sound creepy," She hopped up on one of the desk tops, her heeled feet swinging off the floor. "You drag me out of the Homecoming dance to lock me in a dark classroom. I go missing, you're the first person they look at for my death."

Allen laughed. "God! Ronnie! I thought I had the warped sense of humor."

She grinned at his deep laughter as he leaned against the wall, one hand on his stomach.

"I hardly use it, but when I do…" she trailed off with a shrug, still swinging her feet.

"God, gumdrop I adore you." His laughter trailed off in giggles as he made his way towards where she was sitting. He took the desk across from her and hopped up to sit on the desk top.

"Now. Talk. What's wrong. And don't lie to me gumdrop, I know when something's bothering you."

She shrugged again.

"Right now, I'm a literal movie troupe. I'm that shy, nerdy girl the hot guy takes to the big dance and falls in love with. All it takes is the removal of her glasses, a hair brush and a crap ton of makeup and suddenly, boom!" She waved her hands around. "The problem is, I'm not that girl. I've never been that girl. I could have been." Her hands fell to her lap, her eyes following the path. "I'm a Montague, I could have had private tutors while I jet setted around Paris, Rome and Italy with my parents. I could have the newest fashions, the hottest trends. I could've been the queen bee of this school with a wave of my hand."

She sighed heavily and looked around the room. "But I'm not. I don't want it. I hate crowds, my idea of a perfect Friday night is sitting in my living room with a book. I hate these contacts." She waved towards her face. "I prefer my glasses, they're less hassle. I hate wearing so much makeup and I'd much rather throw my hair into a ponytail and go rather than spend hours to get it perfect. I love jeans and tee shirts and the closest thing to fashion I will ever own are my mother's vintage Caprini boots. I despise makeovers and shopping and in fact, only let Anne use me as a doll in Hollywood under the strict conditions that I would only try on two outfits. This week has been perfect, not because of Homecoming; the only reason I'm even here is because you and Anne were so adamant about it, but because I got to spend it with you and Anne and my friends. I'm not the leader, I'm much happier being the follower."

"Are you done telling me what you're not?" Allen asked. "Because it sounds like you're trying to break up with me and we aren't even dating. Now, I'm going to apologize for dragging you to the Homecoming dance if you really didn't want to go. I missed my Homecoming Dance and my Prom so I have this inflated ideal of what it's supposed to be like and it's frustrating, to me at least, when I hear people don't want to go. I automatically assume it's because they don't have a date or the friends to go with. I don't actually think it's because they just don't want to go. So for that, I'm sorry." He hopped off the desk and stepped towards her, resting his hands on the desktop on either side of her. "As for the rest Veronica, I don't like you because I'm wanting to change you. I like you because you refuse to change. And let's get one thing perfectly clear first, Veronica Montague, I like you. A lot. Like I wanted to kiss you back on the dance floor, kind of like."

Her eyes widened again at his lopsided grin. "Wait…I thought we were just…"

"Oh we are." He agreed. "But I'd really like it to be more than just friends. If you feel the same way."

She blinked. Then again. She nodded. "Are you going to kiss me?"

"Are you offering?" She could hear the smile in his voice. Reaching out, she grabbed the lapels of his suit jacket and tugged him towards her. He came willingly, their lips meeting in the middle. He was warm and soft, his arms moving from where they bracketed her to her shoulders. Fingers slid up her neck. The kiss was soft, chaste, oh so sweet and Ronnie felt like she was in a dream. It was over much too soon and she whined low in her throat when his lips separated from hers.

He swallowed loudly, his eyes still partially closed. "I made a mistake." He whispered. Ronnie's heart jumped painfully in her chest.

"Out in the gym," he clarified. "I shouldn't have tried to kiss you in public. This should have always been our first kiss. In private, between us, away from the cameras and the prying eyes."

She couldn't help the grin that slid across her face. "This was our first kiss. You kissed my cheek the first time."

"You moved so I couldn't not kiss your cheek. Clever you." He pulled back so he could see her face, one hands stroking the skin between her jaw and neckline.

"I don't want to bring you into my world Ronnie, I want to be in yours. I want quiet Friday nights and no camera flashes. I want messy hair and spending the day in my pajamas. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do, it's all I ever wanted to do. But that's my job, I don't want it to be my life. Some things need to kept personal and private." His lips quirked upward and he leaned towards her again. "Like our second kiss."

She met him again and seconds were even better. She wasn't sure she would ever grow tired of kissing Allen Adams. He nudged her legs to the side with his hip so he could step closer, his other hand sliding down to her waist. She could feel the butterflies in her stomach. Or the hornets, she wasn't sure. She either wanted to laugh or throw up. After she was done kissing him because his mouth on hers…those YA novels she read all lied about what kissing someone you really liked felt like. Hot and cold and shivering and burning up all at once and she couldn't get enough of it.

She clung to his shoulders when they parted the second time, out of breath and reeling.

"Remember that part I said earlier about us not dating?" he asked, sounding almost out of breath as she was. "Can we start doing that? Because I really want to do that."

"You live in Hollywood."

"Hel and Arnold can do it, why can't we?"

"Because you live in Hollywood. And because I'm still in school."

"Only until May. Where are you going to college?"

"I have a couple of prospects…Stanford and UC Berkeley being on my list."

"So, you were planning on possibly coming to California and not telling me?"

He looked delighted and she couldn't help the smirk that appeared on her face.

"It was supposed to be a surprise. You just ruined it."

"I'll make it up to you. So...if you get accepted and move to California, what are your thoughts on the dating question?"

"I think Berkeley and Stanford are a heck of a lot closer to LA than Hillwood. I wouldn't be opposed to dating a Hollywood heartthrob."

He grinned. "Veronica Montague, you minx, have I mentioned how much I adore you."

"Nope. Not at all."

* * *

"I think I might be properly besotted."

"Really? Do tell my queen. What has you besotted?"

Rhonda adjusted the sheet as she reached over to pick up another folded piece of puffed dough from the plate sitting on the bottom of bed.

"Eating pizza rolls in bed. It's incredibly indulgent and I am completely besotted by it.'

Tad laughed loudly as she popped one into her mouth and laid back on the bed. She rolled over and rested her body on top of his. His arms wrapped around her half-covered waist, holding her to his chest.

"I never knew you were such a risk taker Ms. Wellington-Lloyd."

"I guess there are still a couple of things you don't know about me then, Mr. Gumblethorpe." She folded her arms against his chest, leaning her chin against her arms. "I think I'm going to miss this come tomorrow."

"Hey, none of that." He raised a hand from her waist to brush her hair away from her face. "I can't believe I'm suggesting taking a page from Helga and Arnold, the king and queen of missed opportunities, but if they can survive the miles for over a year, we can survive the miles for somewhere around ten months. Ten months is a drop in the bucket, considering we've been dancing around this for almost twenty plus years."

"So, you're saying to look forward."

"Tomorrow." With a quick twist, he rolled them over so he was over her. The plate with the pizza rolls went clattering onto the carpeted floor as Rhonda laughed.

"You just ruined the pizza rolls."

"I'm make new ones later. Let's take another page from their book and not waste any of this final night."

With a tug, she pulled the sheet out from between them, letting it half settle onto the floor. "We've wasted more than enough time as it is." She agreed, lifting her head to meet his kiss.

* * *

"Where have you two been?" Alyssa was screeching in excitement the moment they stepped back into the gym. They'd only been gone a little over an hour, in that small darkened room, kissing and talking about the future. With the dance downstairs, Ronnie actually didn't believe anyone would miss her. So she was surprised when Alyssa practically accosted her the moment they reappeared in the gym holding hands. The fact that Alyssa made no comment regarding the hand holding also confirmed her suspicion that something big had happened.

Allen tugged on her hand and she looked at him. He was pointing towards a group of people surrounding Isabella and Dallas who were facing off.

"What the…"

Alyssa grabbed her free hand and tugged her towards the group, talking all the way. Her other hand tightened on Allen's and he followed.

"Izzy snatched Dallas' phone from her hand and deleted all of her photos on her phone and Dallas is threatening to call the police and they've been in a standoff for the last twenty minutes and even Mr. Donaldson can't figure out what to do because technically Izzy didn't destroy Dallas' phone, only deleted all of her photos and Dallas is screaming but she wasn't supposed to be taking pictures of anyone anyway and she's pissed she got caught and it's her own damn fault for being a huge bitch and boasting about what she was going to do with the picture around Izzy. Xander's freaking out but he's standing behind her and Daphne's so pissed she might try to yank out Dallas fake blond weave and say something to them!"

Ronnie almost tripped over her heels as Alyssa came to a sudden stop next to their friends. Isabella was standing quietly, a pink phone in her hand. Dallas was in front of her red faced and yelled incoherent phrases at her. Xander was behind Isabella and holding back a furious looking Daphne. Behind her Anne flashed a quick tight grin towards Ronnie and Allen.

"Hi guys. Where did you two sneak off to?" Her eyes went to their entangled fingers. "Never mind. So, what's up?"

"I'd ask the same thing," Allen countered. "What have you done, darling?"

"Minding my own sweet business. I didn't know I had my own security group when I came here." She joked, glancing at Daphne's back. "Need me to hold your flower babe?"

Ronnie surveyed the situation before turning back to look at Anne, who looked like she was the only one at the moment not ready for a girl fight. "What the hell happened?"

Anne shrugged nonchalantly. "We were dancing and blondie over there started snapping pictures and talking about she was going to sell them to the first trash mag that paid and the next thing I knew Izzy my savior walked over calm as you please, snatched the phone from the bitch's hand and deleted her entire photo album and the cloud. Blondie went livid and here we are."

"Where's Court?" Ronnie asked.

"Lyss' date? He checked out the minute the high-pitched screaming happened from blondie over there."

"Help!" Xander begged, this hold wavering against Daphne's tugging. The redhead, sensing an advantage, pulled harder against Xander's grip. Ronnie let go of Allen's hand and hurried forward to place herself in front of her best friend's path.

"Daph, don't. It isn't worth it."

"It's a free country, you gargantuan bitch! I can take any pictures I want, you had no right!" Dallas was screaming at Isabella.

"Maybe I'll just post the pictures of you making out with your besties' date then?" Lyss yelled back, her hands clenched in fists. "Or maybe the picture I snapped of his hand up your tacky ass dress?"

Dallas was livid. "How dare you!"

"Don't like it when it's your personal life on the internet, do you?" Lyss shot back. Ronnie grabbed Lyss' arm, trying to calm her down. Xander had his hands on Izzy's shoulders, rubbing gently as the teen stood calm and silent among the screaming and taunts around her. Finally, she handed the phone to Mr. Donaldson, who'd been standing there uselessly, as if not sure what to do or if he should call anyone. Brooke tried to reach for the phone but Isabella lifted her arm out of reach once before handing it to the principal.

"You'll see the phone is not harmed in any way. Not cracked and still works. All I did was delete the pictures she took of my friends."

Mr. Donaldson took the phone, giving it a quick once over. "Miss Berman, I really do have to impress upon you the severity of this act."

"Me deleting pictures is harsher than her taking pictures of someone who specifically stated she didn't want pictures taken of her?" Isabella asked.

Anne waved her phone in the air. "Limo's here. Anyone want to ditch the dance and go for burgers?"

Just like that Isabella smiled politely and turned away from a still seething Dallas. "Burgers sound incredible. Where are we going?"

"I found a Yelp for this place on the boardwalk. Reggie's?"

The name of the restaurant caught Alyssa's attention. "Oh my God, Reggie's is so freaking good! That sounds amazing!"

Ronnie tugged on Daphne's arm. "Come on Daph, let's go get burgers."

To her surprise, Anne slid between them, placing her hand on Daphne's shoulder. "Come on babe. It's our last night here, let's do something fun."

Daphne shot one last glare towards Dallas before turning around and walking out, one arm slung over Anne's shoulder. Ronnie looked at Allen who merely shrugged before taking her hand and hurrying them out of the school.

In the cool fall air, Lyss began laughing.

"I seriously thought we were going to get parents called on us. I wasn't sure who was going to start throwing punches first, Dallas or Daphne."

"Wait a minute," Ronnie yelled out, finally slipping off her heels and hurrying towards her friends barefoot. "Hold on. What in the world did I miss?"

"Where were you anyway?" Lyss asked as Isabella opened the back of the limo and climbed in. "You never said."

"You never gave me a chance. Why did Izzy take Dallas' phone? What was Dallas taking pictures of?"

"Oh my God you missed it!" Lyss squealed as Allen helped Ronnie into the limo. The door closed and the limo began to move. She grabbed ahold of Daphne's shoulders and pulled her towards her in a hug. "Our baby girl is all grown up."

"I thought our baby girl was Ronnie?" Daphne laughed. Izzy leaned over Xander to flash her a knowing grin.

"I didn't know you liked girls Daph,"

Daphne gave a half-hearted shrug. "Neither did I? But I like Anne."

"They were totally making out on the dance floor!" Lyss squealed. Daphne rolled her eyes.

"We were not Lyss, it was just a kiss."

Isabella chuckled. "Um…that was more than just a kiss."

"Wait…what?" Ronnie looked at her best friend. "You and Anne?"

"Surprised me too." Daphne's eyes narrowed. "Wait. You and Allen?"

"What?" Lyss' head snapped towards Ronnie so fast, Isabella had to move to avoid getting hit by her hair. Her eyes zeroed in on Allen's arm resting easily over Ronnie's shoulder. "Were you guys making out in a classroom?"

"Would you quit with the gross over dramatizations?" Izzy insisted.

"No. I'm so happy, Izzy, our girls are finally growing up!"

"Oh dear God," Daphne groaned, flopping against Anne's shoulder. The raven-haired actress giggled.

"You don't think we'll get in trouble for what happened at the dance, do you?" Ronnie asked.

Isabella snorted. "For what? I gave her phone back perfectly fine. No punches were thrown-"

"Not for lack of trying," Alyssa grumbled. "Stupid bitch."

"We left, everything's cool. We'll just tell Gerald what happened-"

"Not everything!" Lyss interjected.

"And everything will be fixed. Problem solved."

Like a final declaration, she leaned back in her seat, holding Xander's hand, smiling smugly. Like a switch, the conversation changed to food and potential plans to run along the beach and freeze their toes off. Ronnie leaned against Allen's arm watching her friends.

Izzy, Lyss and Xander were debating the merits of mayonnaise versus mustard on a good burger. Anne was resting her head on Daphne's shoulder and the red-haired teen dropped a quick kiss in her hair. Ronnie smiled as the limo drove them towards the boardwalk. Despite their final moments at the dance, she wouldn't change this night for anything in the world.


	24. Chapter 24

_The party was in full swing and as usual, Rhonda Wellington-Lloyd's graduation party was_ _ **the**_ _party to be at. Arnold wandered around the grounds of the Wellington-Lloyd estate, remembering many of the other times he'd been here for parties. Most of those memories also involved a certain blonde he didn't see. He'd thought about it last night, knowing he and Lila were going to be here today also knowing that Tad and Helga were probably going to be also. After all, Tad wouldn't miss out on Rhonda's graduation party and if Tad came, then Helga would be with him. This argument had gone on long enough. The weeks' worth of dreams he'd had back in February had stuck with him and while he wasn't quite sure how to broach the subject or even find the mysterious blonde who seemed to disappear every time he caught sight of her, now that school was out and before they all went their separate ways to college or wherever they went, he was determined to find her here, corner her if he had to and apologize for what he said. Then they were going to talk. He knew Lila probably wouldn't be happy about it, him cornering Helga to talk to her, but at this moment he couldn't even find his girlfriend to explain his plan even if he wanted to. He'd tell her after he and Helga worked out their issues and were friends again. Because he missed her. They were friends and this year without her had been not fun at all._

" _Having fun Arnold?" Rhonda asked, holding out a bottle for him. He smiled, taking the bottle from her. If there was one thing he hadn't expected was becoming closer friends with Rhonda this year. He expected it was because Tad was her shadow and wherever Tad went, Helga went and therefore they shared some things in common._

" _Great party as usual.'  
"Did you bring Lila? I haven't seen her." _

_He looked around the back yard again, seeing most of their classmates mulling around and swimming in the pool._

" _She's around here somewhere. She said she wanted to run to the bathroom and change when we got here. I guess she plans on swimming."_

" _Hmmm," She took a sip from her cup, her eyes scanning the crowd. "We're graduates now Arnold. What are your plans?"_

" _NYU to study anthropology. Maybe travel the world for a year with my parents, they're itching to get back out to the jungles and explore. Proposing to Lila."_

 _Rhonda almost choked on her drink. "You're proposing? I have to say I didn't see that coming."_

 _He frowned. "Why? We've been dating for four years, I think that's more than enough time to get to know someone."_

" _But you were teenagers. People grow Arnold, like new things. All I'm saying is maybe…wait a bit? To see if your tastes don't…change."_

" _They aren't going to change Rhonda. I love Lila and she loves me and I'm going to propose."_

 _He held out a hand in supplication. "Okay. Sorry. You need to do what makes you happy Arnold and if this is it…then…" she took a drink from her cup to cover the rest of her sentence. Arnold relaxed a bit, looking around one last time._

" _Where's Tad? I haven't seen him at all. I kind of wanted to talk to Helga while she was here."_

 _Rhonda lifted a questioning eyebrow. "Helga? I thought you two weren't talking."_

" _Yeah, and it's getting ridiculous. I want to make amends before we all go our separate ways. She's my friend and I…I miss her sometimes."_

" _Hmmm," She glanced around the yard. "You know, I'm not really sure. He might be running late trying to get her out of the house." She slid her phone from her Capri pocket. "Maybe I'll call his house and see if he's left yet."_

" _Killer party, as always Rhonda." Gerald announced as he approached the two. Arnold grinned at his friend as they did their handshake._

" _Hey, have you seen Tad or Helga around?" he asked as Rhonda was dialing a number. "I thought sure Tad would be here by now."_

 _Gerald looked chagrinned, glancing between the two. "You didn't know? Tad and Hel aren't in Hillwood. They left yesterday morning for California."_

 _Rhonda closed her phone, looking at Gerald perplexed. "Um no? Tad said he'd be here for this party. I handed him the invitation myself."_

" _No, they've been planning this for a month now. I had breakfast with them both before they got on the road. Sorry." He gave them both a weak smile and patted a stunned Arnold on the shoulder. "I'm gonna make the rounds, see you later?"_

" _Um…yeah."_

 _Arnold and Rhonda looked at each other as Gerald walked off. Rhonda looked hurt by the news._

" _Why wouldn't Tad tell me he was leaving?" she asked. He didn't have an answer. He was still reeling over the fact that Helga was gone. All his plans for confronting her and apologizing and talking it out disappeared in a cloud of dust. He was never going to see Helga Pataki again._

 _And that thought hurt._

* * *

Arnold's car pulled up in the circular driveway behind the blue car already parked there. Helga was typing furiously on her phone, her brows scrunching together in a frown.

"I'm already behind schedule. Thank God I packed before I went to Harold and Patty's." she muttered swiping things of the task list on her phone. The passenger door opened and Arnold's hand reached in. She looked up, blinking against the sunlight at the man half bent by the open car door and smiled, laying her hand into his.

"An escort to the door?" he asked, his tone playful.

"Thank you, good sir."

He helped her out of the car, not letting go of her hand as they walked up the walk to the door.

"Tad better be awake." She groused. They reached the front step and Arnold held back, tugging her to a stop. She turned with a questioning look.

"One minute." He begged, pulling her towards him. "Just give me one more minute."

She went willingly, her arms wrapping around his waist and resting her head against his shoulder, feeling his warmth surround her.

"You haven't even left yet and I already miss you."

"It's only a couple more months."

His arms tightened around her, his lips brushing against her temple briefly. "The first time letting you go was hard, but this time is almost impossible. I've gotten used to seeing you every day and having you next to me when I sleep."

She smiled happily, lifting her head to catch his gaze. "We'll go on like we did before this visit. We'll text and skype and before you know it, you'll be making plans to fly out to LA for good."

"I'd better rent a hotel room for that first night." His gaze made her shiver; how one person could perfect that sultry gaze without even knowing he did it was beyond her, but that look had always send shivers down her spine. Now was no different. "I wouldn't want to keep Tad up all night."

She felt herself blushing. "Is that a challenge? Because Tad would take that as a challenge."

He lowered his head and caught her lips. There was a desperation in the kiss; the almost frantic, melancholy sweetness of someone who knew this was goodbye. She tightened her grip around his waist, pushing herself as close to him as possible and wouldn't get them arrested.

"You said one minute." She gasped out, arching her neck as his lips pressed against the skin there.

"I lied, I'm greedy." He whispered against her skin between kisses. "Is there any room in that schedule?"

"Maybe, if I finish my checklist quickly, but it won't be long."

"We only need thirty minutes."

Giggling, she pushed him away, grinning at his pout. "If you want thirty minutes, we're wasting time here."

He let go of her, reaching behind her to open the door. "Anything I can do to help?"

They hurried into the house, Helga's eyes back on her list of things to do.

"We need to clean out the kitchen, which I think is mostly done, just taking out the trash and cleaning the dishes. There's the sheets that need to be deposited in the laundry room, packing our stuff into the rental, final check over and that should be it."

"The kitchen is cleaned, trash taken out and dishes washed, dried and put up." Rhonda's voice came from the kitchen, followed by the woman herself. Helga looked up from her phone at Rhonda's voice. The woman stepped into hallway wearing a pair of jeans and Tad's AC/DC tee shirt.

"I see the plan worked."

Rhonda grinned. "Like a charm. I was up early so I cleaned the kitchen. Tad is still sleeping, I think, and I was not about to touch your room nor the kids room."

"They should've done theirs yesterday morning. They moved to the hotel yesterday. Have you heard for any of them?"

"I got a text from Patty this morning saying all four girls came home around two in the morning exhausted, giddy and stuffed. It seems they spent a good portion of the evening at Reggie's."

"I love Reggie's." Arnold sighed. Helga was confused.

"What's Reggie's?"

"It showed up about what, six, seven years after we graduated?"

Arnold nodded. "About."

"It's this little dive place on the boardwalk that opens around ten in the evening and stays open until about five in the morning. They have the best burgers around. It's complete drunk or comfort food." Rhonda explained.

"Rhon, you down here?" Tad gravelly voice called out. He lumbered down the stairs, yawning widely and scratched at his messy hair wearing only a pair of boxer shorts. Helga glanced at her best friend/ roommate and then back at Rhonda.

"This is what you have to look forward too." She said, chucking her thumb at him. Rhonda grinned.

"I know. I can't wait."

"Hey, there's at least one of us in this house to which this is not a normal occurrence." Helga deadpanned to the still yawning man. He opened one eye and tossed a halfhearted wave towards Arnold.

"Meh, he's got the same equipment. Morning, my goddess."

Rhonda giggled as he hooked an arm around her waist and placed a loud kiss on her cheek.

"Is there anything left to eat in this house or did you get rid of everything?" he asked, walking into the kitchen and tugging her with him.

"There's some pastries left and some milk," her voice grew fainter as they both disappeared into the kitchen.

"Woman, I'm going to take pleasure in taking my shirt back." They heard Tad say followed by Rhonda laughing.

"And on that note," Helga announced loudly, and checking off stuff on her list. "There's just the sheets, the once over which we can do before we leave and…we're finished."

Arnold's half-lidded sultry smirk was back. "I saw we get to work on those sheets right now."

Helga turned off her phone and slid it into her back pocket. "Sounds like a good plan."

* * *

"Bags checked, carry on carried, laptops in the off position." Hel muttered to herself as they crossed the airport.

"Dyna-therms connected, infra cells up, and mega thrusters are go." Tad finished with a smirk. She turned back to throw him a dirty look.

"Quit quoting TV lines at me."

"But Athena…"

They stopped right before the line to the body scanners, which led towards the terminals.

"Well, this is it."

Helga dropped her carry on and threw herself into Arnold's arms. He caught her in a tight hug, his own face ducking against her plated hair.

"I'll miss you." He whispered. "I love you."

"I love you too Arnold." Her voice wavered a moment. She pressed her lips to his in a soft, quick kiss before releasing him completely. "I'll call you when we get home."

"Okay."

Tad gave Rhonda a quick kiss before turning away and walking towards the line. Arnold and Rhonda watched them walk off; Rhonda, still wearing Tad's shirt, leaning slightly against Arnold's shoulder.

Before they reached the line, Tad suddenly dropped his carry-on bag and handed his laptop bag to Helga, who juggled with it a bit to keep it from falling, before running back towards the two. Rhonda straightened, a frown creasing her brow.

"What the…" Arnold started as Tad reached them, sliding the last quarter of a foot on his knees to stop in front of Rhonda. She looked down at him, one brow arched questioningly.

"Marry me." He suddenly said. Rhonda's eyes widened and she took a stunned step back.

"Wha…"

"Marry me." He repeated. "In ten months' time, when you get to LA. The first thing we'll do after getting you settled in will be to take a weekend trip to Vegas and get married by an Elvis impersonator."

Rhonda laughed and fell to her knees in front of him. "Yes. You ridiculous man. Yes, I'll marry you in Vegas by an Elvis impersonator."

The people around them broke out in applause as she grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him. He stood up, helping her to her feet before pulling her in for one last kiss.

"I love and adore you, goddess."

"I love you too, Thaddeus."

He took her hand and bowed over it before turning and running back to a disbelieving Helga. "Call you tonight my beloved!"

Arnold held a hand to his mouth to cover the snickers as he and a still stunned Rhonda watched the two go through the scanners and disappear into the throng of people with one last wave.

"Well…" he started after they'd gone. "Ronnie's going to be surprised."

"Shut up Arnold."

They turned and left the airport, finding Arnold's car in the parking lot. He'd followed the rental to the airport, letting Rhonda ride with Tad and Helga ride with him for last moments of privacy. Rhonda's phone rang as she slid into the car. She pulled out her phone and swiped it, putting it on speaker phone.

"Hey Patty, are the girls awake yet?"

"They've been up for an hour or two. They're already making plans to hang out today. Hel and Tad gone?"

"Yep." Arnold said as he maneuvered the car out of the parking garage. "We just dropped them off at the airport. You missed it, Rhonda's engaged."

"What?" Patty 's voice rose a bit in surprise. "When?"

"Not ten minutes ago. Right before Tad left."

"Wow. And here I thought I was the one with the good gossip."

"Wait. What happened?" Rhonda asked.

"It seems the girls almost got kicked out of the Homecoming dance."

"What?" Arnold and Rhonda both exclaimed at the same time.

"That's not even the best part. It also seems as if your daughters are dating Hollywood stars."

Rhonda and Arnold looked at each other.

"Drive faster." Rhonda said. Arnold nodded as his foot pressed down on the gas.

"Now, Patty," Rhonda said as the car sped up. "Explain everything that happened."


	25. Epilogue

**AN:** Thank you to everyone who had stuck with me through this series. Thank you so much for the love and the reviews and the support, you all don't know how much I would smile after reading some of the reviews. There were even squees. There might be one last one off for this before it's completely over. Kind of an "after the story" wrap up. Also, if the cut scene sound familiar, I debated about it when I wrote it before deciding, yep, it's EA canon. Again thank you all, and I love you guys!

* * *

Epilogue:

 _The tapping on his skylight woke him up immediately._

 _His eyes shot open and above him he could see the silhouette of a figure against the dark cloudy sky._

 _He climbed out of bed and climbed the makeshift ladder to unlatch the skylight window._

 _Helga almost tumbled in, caught by him at the last moment._

 _At first, he thought it was raining until he realized it was only overcast outside, no rain, the water on her face were tears._

 _Silently, he helped her trembling body down until they reached the floor of his room. He pulled her to him and she fell into his arms, the tears falling quicker, heavy sobs racking her body as he held her tightly, her head tucked under his chin, his hand holding her to him, stroking her hair as she sobbed in his arms._

 _He wondered why she wasn't with Tad, crying into his shoulder, why she'd chose his house at four in the morning even after their fight and her declaration._

 _He realized he didn't care, selfishly, he was glad it was him and not Tad she'd come to seeking comfort. Her life had been shattered in one brief moment and he was the only one who understood what it meant, the only one who could comfort her._

 _Without breaking contact, he maneuvered them to his bed and pulled her down with him, wrapping her tighter in his arms._

 _Her arms were wrapped around him, her fingers clutching his tee-shirt._

" _I'm here," he whispered into her hair. "I'll always be here for you."_

 _None of it mattered at the moment; school, their fight, Lila, none of it._

 _There was only this moment; him and her._

 _Nothing else._

 _Her deep sobs tapered off to hiccupped mews and yet she hadn't moved. He pulled a cover over the both of them and closed his eyes, still holding her tight._

 _ **Hey Arnold Hey Arnold Hey Arnold…**_

 _Arnold slapped at his alarm clock and fell back onto the bed, groaning. He looked up at the skylight above him, closed and locked._

 _This had been the fourth night in a row he's had this dream. And each time it'd felt so real. He could almost imagine he could smell her shampoo on him._

 _His phone rang and he rolled back over, picking up the receiver._

" _Hi sweetie," Lila's voice said on the other end. "I have to be at school early for cheerleading so Daddy's going to take me on his way to work. Love you!"_

 _She hung up before he could say anything. He replaced the receiver and rolled back to stare at the skylight._

 _There was no way his dream was anything more than that. It was just his subconscious telling him what he already knew, he missed his friend._

 _With a groan, he rolled out of bed, pulling off his damp tee shirt._

 _He was going to have to get a fan for his room, he was sweating way too much while he slept._

* * *

Four girls were sitting in the Shortman's living room, light chatter in the room as the Emmy awards were on the television. Arnold opened his house for a watch party so Rhonda, Timberly and Patty were sitting in the living room also, talking during commercials. Ever After was up for a couple of awards including best primetime drama, best supporting actress and best producer. The show had already swept the People's Choice Awards and had won the couple of nominations at the Golden Globes.

Rhonda reached across the table for the bowl of chips, her engagement ring sparkling against the lamplight. Timberly grabbed a handful as the bowl make its way to Rhonda's lap.  
"I thought the girls were going to riot when Rebecca didn't win the supporting actress award."

"She was robbed!" Isabella exclaimed. "She totally deserved that award."

"The People's Choice is one thing Isabella," Patty said. "The Emmy's are quite another. Usually teen dramas don't get awards, especially when they're up against political dramas and procedurals."

"They'd better win something or the fandom is going to riot." Lyss stated.

The music came back up and talking stopped as a popular actor and actress came up on stage with an envelope.

"We're here to present the nomination for Best Producer. The nominees are…"

Arnold and Rhonda sat on the couch next to each other, staring at the screen as the nominees were announced. The girls on the floor screamed when the cameras showed Hel and Tad sitting side by side in the audience. Tad looked up at the camera and gave a slight smile and wave. The camera went back to the two people on stage. The woman opened her envelope.

"And the winner is…" the man said. They both looked at the name and looked up at the same time.

"Inane Zebra for Ever After."

The living room erupted in cheers as the camera flashed back to Hel and Tad. Hel was still sitting shocked and Tad was looking around before he looked at Hel, his face splitting into a wide grin. He stood up and pulled her to her feet. She followed still looking a little gob smacked.

The two walked up the steps to the stage and took the awards from the models holding them. They shook hands with the two people on stage before Tad, looking sharp in his black tux, took the microphone.

"Okay…wow…truth be told we were not at all expecting this. I'd like to thank the WCB and Richard Becker for taking a chance on a four season only show and trust me, there were a lot of people who wanted more seasons. The kids without whom our words would never have been so beautifully translated onto the small screen. Ben, who was patient enough to not only direct our cast of actors but put up with us as well. Our families, friends and the people who inspired us whether they knew it at the time or not."

Beside him, Hel merely held up her award and smiled tightly at the audience. The music began playing as they walked off and two new people walked onto stage.

"Finally, the nominations for best prime-time drama show. The nominees are…"

The girls were still talking excitedly as the nominations were read and Timberly finally had to hush them so everyone else could hear the next award being announced.

Alyssa grabbed Isabella and Daphne's hands, clutching tightly. Daphne grabbed Ronnie's hand and the two teens shared a look as the envelope was opened.

"The winner for best prime-time drama series is…Ever After."

The cameras panned out to the audience where most of the actors and actresses were sitting. Anderson and Rebecca hugged and then were hugged from Ariel, Lana and Anne who were behind them. Allen stood up and adjusted his jacket before accepting Rebecca's excited hug.

In the living room, the girls were all on their feet and screaming, hugging and crying. Timberly and Patty were yelling at the four teens to move out of the way of the television and Arnold and Rhonda were just laughing.

"You're missing your boyfriend, Rhonda." Timberly shouted over the screaming.

"Down in front!" Rhonda yelled at the girls. "We're all missing it!"

The four teens dropped down to their knees, still flailing. Every once in a while, a strangled "meep" would emerge.

On the television, the stage was full of the entire cast of Ever After including Hel and Tad who both looked stunned. The cast were hugging each other, hugging the producers, hugging anyone who would hug them. Tad and Hel took their second award and Anderson waved Tad and Hel towards the microphone once more. Tad held out his hand and Hel eyes him for a moment before picking up the skirt of her blue gown and stepping to the microphone with him.

"I didn't go to my Prom," she said, her voice soft and wavering. "Neither of us did, but I'm guessing this is what it feels like. Maybe?" She glanced towards a camera, looking right into it. "Guys, is this what it feels like?"

On the couch, Arnold and Rhonda burst out laughing.

On stage, Hel looked at Tad and grinned. "I want to thank each and every one of these kids behind me for bringing Tad and my words to life. They are all amazing and deserve every bit of this." She looked towards the ceiling with a smile and raised her award. "Phoebs, this is for you imouto."

She stepped back so Tad could take the front.

"Again, all thanks to everyone who was a part of this amazing story and to the fans out there who saw something in our story and identified with it. Always remember, real life isn't as neatly wrapped up after sixty minutes. And even though our tag line for this show has always been "not all stories have happy endings" sometimes, they do. Thank you." He was about to step away but stopped, leaning back towards the microphone. "One last thing, five more months!"

The group walked off stage as the host appeared and said their goodbyes. Ronnie already had her phone out and messaging Allen. The other three were still talking over each other excitedly about what just happened. Patty looked over at Arnold and Rhonda with a grin.

"I do believe you two got called out twice."

"I think we might have." Rhonda responded.

Timberly helped Arnold pick up some of the empty glasses and plates and carry them into the kitchen.

"Did you think that two years ago your entire world would change this dramatically?" she asked. He shook his head.

"Never in my wildest dreams."

She nodded as she put the plates in the sink.

"Well, if anyone deserves a happy ending, it's you Arnold."

"Not me. Gerald told me once it's not my happy ending. I'm just the lucky person who gets to share it."

She stopped, tilting her head in thought. "I like that sentiment. Sounds like my brother."

As he put his dishes into the sink, he thought about the future. Daphne had been accepted to Cal Tech and Veronica and been accepted to Berkley which made their trip to Los Angeles in a little over five months much easier on both he and Rhonda. Before the awards show had started Rhonda had told him Tad had boasted of a surprise when she got out there. With Tad, it could be anything. He was planning to talk to Helga tomorrow to find out what Tad had planned but he had an idea, from hints dropped in previous conversations that it might have something to do with living arrangements. Everything was on plan and running smoothly. A month after high school graduations, he and Ronda and the two girls would pack up everything left, hop on a plane and begin their new lives.

And they all would live happily. Ever after.

Yes, he liked that sentiment very much.


End file.
